


Jägermeister and the Island Trials

by Finn_of_the_Dead



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions, Pocket Monsters: Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon | Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon Versions
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Daddy Kink Guzma, Grimer is an alcoholic, Lusamine is about thirty percent less insane, Moon is promiscuous, Multi, Nothing is cannon, Occasional smut lmao, Pansexual protag, This is a trashfire, hints of usum thrown in, my life is a mistake, sun/moon plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-05
Packaged: 2019-02-27 08:49:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,087
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13244742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Finn_of_the_Dead/pseuds/Finn_of_the_Dead
Summary: How the hell does one go on the run from the mob and end up neck deep in a corporate conspiracy that bends the rules of space and time? Easy. Just befriend a hyperactive fifteen-year-old, an agoraphobe, and a blue space-cloud. Oh, and don't forget the living pile of slime that's decided to follow you around. Can't get worse from here.---Alternatively, Gumza has his mid-life crisis at age 21.





	1. One: Mistakes Have Been Made

**Author's Note:**

> One: In which we meet our cast of slightly important characters: the protagonist, an emo 21-year old and his sibling, a bottomless hole, a white girl, a living tablet, and everyone's new favorite mascot.

Things were not going well for Selene Roth. At the moment, she was about three miles from a hurricane on Melemele sea, riding in a fisherman’s boat with her drunk mother, a hydrophobic Meowth, and a mildly seasick police agent. In between listening to the man vomit and stopping herself from tossing the cat into the water, Selene was running through what had gone down a month ago in her head. Approximately thirty days ago, the president of Silph Co. was arrested for embezzling millions of dollars from his own company. He was arrested because of Selene’s mother, Luna Roth, who may or may not have had an illicit affair with said president before exposing him to the Kanto Police. It should have been a given that the president had mob ties, and in hindsight Selene should’ve seen the signs way before the dead Spearow appeared on their front door. 

Fuck that shit man. 

With one call to the international police and two fake ID’s, Luna and Selene Roth were now Casey and Ava Moon, simple folk from the Sevii Isles who wanted a change in scenery. They family was set to live on Melemele Island, in a small house guarded by an International Police Agent named Philip. Selene, or Ava, as she would be now going by, knew from the beginning that this was a terrible idea. For one thing, it seemed her mother was more interested in Philip than her family’s safety. For another thing, Philip arranged for them to get to Melemele via fishing boat. In the middle of summer. Which, for anyone who knew anything about Alola, was storm season. 

So there she sat, on the tiny boat, trying not to think of how her life could get any worse. Deep down, Ava had a tiny shred of hope that life in Melemele would be okay. Maybe her mother would settle down with a responsible man, one who wasn’t prone to seasickness and going by ridiculous codenames. Maybe Ava could hone her art skills again and sell paintings in the Hau’oli market. Maybe they’d be able to find peace in the eye of the storm.

But in the world of Pokemon, things are never that easy. 

\---

About 400 miles southeast of Melemele, in a broken down house on Ula’Ula island, a no-good, spoiled rotten baby was getting his ass handed to him on a silver platter.

“I don’t care if you don’t like it, Guz, we made a promise and we gotta stick to it.” Plumeria scolded the grumpy 21-year old. “You know how I don’t like breakin’ promises.”

“But I don’t wanna hire a new kid!” Guzma whined, flopping down on his bed with a big huff. “He’s gonna cramp my style!”

Plumeria rested her hands on her hips, frowning. “Your style is 14-year old bedhead.” She growled. “And I don’t care what you want. What I want is to not get slaughtered by Lusa--”

“Don’t say her name. It’s a curse.” Guzma glowered. “I don’t even know why I agreed to this shit anyway.”

“Power, Guz. We’re doing this for power.” Plumeria reminded him. “Besides, the kid’s pretty strong.” She sauntered over and sat next to him on his bed. “Boy. When was the last time you washed these sheets?”

“Never.” He grunted. “You probably don’t wanna sit there. I whacked it earlier.”

Plumeria leaped off the bed. “Arceus Guz, that’s disgusting!” She recoiled in horror. “Gods. That’s just. Ew.” 

The man cracked a goofy grin. “Don’t act like you don’t do it too, Plumey.”

“If ya wanna keep your dick, you’re going to shut your mouth.” Plumeria spat. “Look. Imma go rally the troops, and give the kid a tour.” She paused at the door. “And uh, Guz, you might want to shape up. The little numbskulls think your goin’ soft. I mean, we all saw how you went gaga over that lil’ Acerola chick. You gotta toughen up.” 

Guzma pouted. He hadn’t gone ‘Gaga’, as Plumeria said. All he had done was help her get a Shedinja. The Bug/Ghost type wasn’t found in Alola, but Guzma had been holding onto Nincada for a while, and wanted a Ninjask real bad. When he found the purple-haired girl snooping around Po Town, he nearly kicked her out until she showed interest in the surprise party member. 

But the grunts saw him give her the Shedinja, and thought it was a sign he was going easy on folks. Guzma? The hated boss who beats you down, and beats you down, and never lets up? He could never be soft! He was goddamn, motherfuckin’ Guzma! He didn’t care for no one and nobody! Well, besides his Pokemon. And his lil bro-err, sister. And sometimes that old cop who came around and kept the grunts in order. But no one else besides that. Because that’s what a big bad boss did. Not give a flying shit.

That’s what he tried to convince himself, anyway.

\---

It’s important to note that at this point in time, while Plumeria welcomed some emo angst monster into the ranks of Team Skull, and while Ava Moon aka Selene Roth aka our mildly-temperamental protagonist braved the rough waters of Melemele sea, Hau and Lillie were enjoying a big malasada in Hau’oli city. This is important because up until then, Lillie hadn’t stepped out of her loft in Professor Kukui’s research lab. It had been three months since she had washed up on the shores of Route 1, and she hadn’t left since. 

“A-are you sure this is safe?” Lillie asked, shivering in her seat. 

“Of course! I’ve never been hurt eating a big malasada!” Hau said happily. “Well, unless you count the time I ate too many malasadas and got food poisoning. Hah! That was funny.” He scarfed down his second malasada of the day. “But you know what they say!”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full?” Lillie offered. 

Hau snorted. “No, silly! A malasada a day keeps the doctor away!” He wiped his mouth on an already dirty napkin. “Or is it keeps the Kahuna away? I’m not sure.”

Under the table, Lillie’s bag started to move erratically. Feeling the movements, she locked her feet on either side of the bag. “Don’t move, Nebby.” She whispered frantically. “You’re going to get me in trouble!”

“Who’re you talking to?” Hau asked through another malasada mouthful. “Your imaginary friend? I had one of those when I was five. His name was Dad.” 

“Hau, I think we need to talk about that. Your grandfather came to visit the other day…” Lillie trailed off, noticing the confused look on Hau’s face. “Nevermind.”

Hau shrugged off the confusion. “We should probably go back to Kukui’s. He said he had a surprise for us! Plus, you can see more of the city now!”

“I just want to go back home.” Lillie replied. She leaned under the table to grab her bag and screamed. “Eeeek!” She pushed her chair back and stood on it. “What is that!”

The patrons of the restaurant looked at her in shock, before looking under her table. They then looked under their own tables. Then they all screamed.

Lurking under each and every table was an Alolan Grimer. 

“Grimer!” The Pokemon all chorused. 

There was a moment of silence, and then a frenzy of terrified patrons running out the door. In the confusion, the Grimer under Lillie and Hau’s table scooted into Hau’s bag; Hau was too busy finishing a malasada to notice. It took him a couple minutes to realize what was going on, and by the time he figured out Lillie was gone, the Grimer was hidden away in his bag. “Lillie?” Hau called. Glancing out the front window, he saw the blonde girl waving at him. She looked absolutely horrified. This was definitely not good for her phobia. It would also be a lot to explain to Kukui. But Hau wasn’t concerned with the negatives of the situation. Lillie had still gotten out of the house, on her on will for once. 

“You okay?” He asked her when they met outside. “I can take you home if you want.” 

Lillie nodded quickly. “I’m okay. I think I did okay. But yes, we should go home. Nebby and I got a scare back there.”

Hau was just happy that Lillie had gotten out fine. He linked arms with her and escorted her out of the city, expertly avoiding trainers and salesmen (the latter of which plagued the city like Rattatas). They returned to Kukui’s lab in record time, Hau throwing his bag down on the couch carelessly and Lillie opening hers with the utmost care. They were quite the odd couple, but had grown close over the past three months. Lillie’s immediate reluctance to leave the house was confusing to Hau, and Hau’s obsession with malasadas was initially appaling to Lillie. But over time they grew used to each other’s antics. After all, once you live with Kukui for an extended period of time, you can get used to anything. 

While Hau wasn’t paying attention (which was quite often), the Alolan Grimer oozed out of his bag. The Grimer was quite pleased with his new surroundings, and made a beeline for the kitchen. The invasion of the malasada shop had been a tactical maneuver made by their leader, an Alolan Muk. The Grimers wanted food and were tired of waiting for trainers to drop berries. This particular Grimer had Gluttony as an ability, so that was twice the need for food. He made himself comfortable inside the fruit basket and began to devour everything in sight.

Meanwhile, Hau and Lillie sat on the front porch and waited for Kukui. Well, Hau did. Lillie stood inside and looked out the screen door. “You think he’s coming home soon?” Hau asked hopefully. “He said he was real busy today. But maybe he’ll come back in time to make you dinner.”

“Maybe.” Lillie shrugged. “But I don’t know. I can always make my own--boat?”

“Silly Lillie, you can’t eat a boat.” Hau chided her. “I’ve tried. It’s not a fun time.”

“No, Hau, I think I see a boat in the distance.” Lillie responded. “Look!” 

Sure enough, a boat appeared on the horizon. It was a small boat, carrying at least three passengers. Hau began to panic. “What is that? Who is it? Do you think they’re evil?”

A hand landed on Hau’s shoulder. “No, my boy, they’re quite the opposite!” Kukui exclaimed. “Ahoy there!” The shirtless professor beckoned his two prodigies to his side. “C’mon kids, we have to help them get to shore.” Ignoring Lillie’s protests, the professor ran to the seashore. “Phillip my boy!”

Lillie watched as the boat floated to meet Kukui. Three, no, four passengers got out. The first was a skittish Meowth, who ran to shore instantly and never looked back. Then a man with vomit covering his shirt, followed by a woman in yellow and white. The last passenger was a girl; she wasn’t much older than Lillie, but the look on her face made her seem years older. She had brown hair tied back in a bun, and a dark look on her face.

“Kukui, I told you. My codename...is Looker.” The man said.

Kukui laughed a hearty laugh and clapped Phillip on the back. “You’re hilarious, Philly.” He looked to the two women. “You must be Casey and Ava. Alola!” 

The woman, Casey, grinned. “Aren’t you a fine thing! Alola to you too!” She turned to the girl, who Lillie assumed was her daughter. “Isn’t he sweet?”

“We just took a boat around a hurricane and that’s your question?” Ava shot back. 

Casey pouted. “Oh you. Isn’t she a card?” 

That’s one way to put it, Lillie thought to herself. The girl, Ava, was pretty intriguing. The professor hadn’t said anything about people arriving, especially via boat, but then again that may have been why he was out all day. 

“I have your house all set up. Everything’s new and shiny!” Kukui was explaining. “Here, I’ll come show you. Oh, Lillie, Hau, why don’t you introduce yourselves to your new neighbors!”

“Hiya! I’m Hau!” The boy shouted. 

“I think he meant go over there and talk, not scream from the front porch.” Lillie whispered. 

“Oh!” Hau said. He threw the front door open and grabbed Lillie’s hand. “Come on!” Pulling her down the stairs, they nearly tripped over themselves and fell off balance.

“These are my two assistants, Lillie and Hau.” Kukui introduced them. “Kids, this is my old friend Phil, his wife Casey, and their daughter Ava.”

Ava instantly froze. “I did not agree to that.” She frowned. 

Casey was still smiling, albeit more forced than before. “Of course you did! He’s your father!” Turning to Kukui, she said, “Why don’t you show us our house! Maybe Ava can relax there! She gets a little wonky when she’s tired, saying all these weird things.” She laughed awkwardly. 

“That sounds like a great idea!” Kukui exclaimed. “Let’s go everyone!” As they started off the beach, Kukui stopped. “Oh, Hau, I left a pie in the oven. Can you bring it? Oh, and that box with the bow on it too.” 

Hau nodded excitedly. “Sure professor!” 

And so they set off: the family to their new home (with Kukui and Lillie in tow), and Hau to get a pie and the gift. He found them easily, and ran off toward his friends. He had, of course, run right past the Grimer that was chowing down on Kukui’s fruit basket. Said Grimer detected the pie, and in his craving for more food, followed the scent (and Hau) out the door. He trailed up the beach to the unsuspecting house, searching for the pie of his dreams.

\---

Kukui had instantly taken Casey and Phil out to the best bar in Hau’oli, leaving the kids to hang out in the house. Ava was taking in her new surroundings the way an animal would inspect a cage. “This whole place is for us.” She repeated for the fourth time.

“Yupp!” Hau replied, also for the fourth time. 

Ava sighed. “Sorry if I seem standoffish. It’s been a long day.” She collapsed into the couch. “This is all just new.”

“I can understand that.” Lillie said. “I was in a similar situation a few months ago.”

“Really now.” Ava said, opening one of her eyes. She examined Lillie for a minute, then closing her eye again. “You wash up on a beach in a foreign city too?”

“She did!” Hau exclaimed. “It was rad!” 

The new girl chuckled. “That’s not the word I’d use, but okay then.” She leaned forward in the seat. “So who’s the box for?”

The gift and the pie were both sitting on the living room table. Hau had placed them there absentmindedly and instantly forgot about them. “I don’t know.” He shrugged.

Ava reached for the gift tag on the box. “For Ava: A little help for your Alolan Adventure.” She read it aloud. “Alolan adventure my ass.” She ripped the tag off and opened the box. Inside was a set of Pokeballs and a red tablet thing. “So I know what those are, but uh, what the fuck?” Ava grabbed the tablet thing and waved it around. 

“Bzzt! Hey, gentle on the goods!” The tablet buzzed to life in her hands. “I didn’t sit in a box for three hours to get man-handled!” It shook itself out of Ava’s grasp. “You’re Ava, right? Professor said I was workin’ with ya now! Nice to meet ya!”

As a girl who had been hunted by the mob, Ava Moon had seen a lot of things. But a talking Pokedex? That was pretty new. “And you are?”

“I’m the Rotom Dex!” Rotom explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

Ava stared at it. Then, “I need a drink to process this.” She marched over to the kitchen and opened the top cabinet. When setting up the house, Kukui had to follow specific instructions left by Ava’s mom. The alcohol, as always, was on the top shelf. As she poured herself a drink, she asked the other two, “Want something?”

“Your mother lets you drink?” Lillie said in response. 

“Drinking age in Kanto is sixteen.” Ava shrugged. She brought the bottle of Jäger over to the table with her. “As is the age of consent. But I’m guessing it’s different here.”

“Nah, it’s the same.” Hau said. “Kukui doesn’t let us drink though. He says it’s the work of satan!”

Ava looked at him blankly. She then got up, got two more cups, and filled them. “Look, if we’re going to be friends, you have to put up with my pastimes. Which is pretty easy, because it’s just drinking and sex. The latter of which,” she passed them their drinks, “you’ll probably not have to deal with.” 

Lillie took the cup hesitantly. “That seems a little dangerous, don’t you think?”

Taking a drink from her cup, Ava said, “When you grow up in Saffron City with a neglectful mother, you have to amuse yourself somehow.” She pulled her hair out of her bun, letting it fall down to her shoulders. “Anyway, I’d feel a little better about welcoming you into my home if I knew at least something about you guys. So how about--what the fuck is that.”

Hau and Lillie turned to see what Ava was staring at. At the side of the table, reaching forward, was the Grimer. “Grimer!” Grimer said. 

Lillie screamed and hid behind the couch, while Hau just stared blankly. Rotom decided to speak up. “It’s a Grimer.” Rotom said, very proud of itself.

“Yeah no shit.” Ava said, still staring at the Grimer. “It looks like it’s a shiny, but it has that weird yellow streak.” 

“Grimer!” Grimer said.

“Oh, that’s an Alolan Grimer.” Hau said finally. “Some Pokemon have different forms in Alola. I bet if you caught it, you could learn all about it!”

“Please make it go away.” Lillie squeaked.

Grimer started to reach for the pie. Ava moved the pie over. “You gonna go for it buddy?” 

“Grimer!” Grimer repeated, getting really frustrated. He rolled over the table and reached for the pie again. 

Ava swapped the pie for the Jäger. “What about that?” 

The Grimer sniffed it, and smashed it on the ground.

“Motherfucker!” Ava shouted. “Damn fucking Pokemon!”

Grimer rolled onto the ground and began to absorb the Jäger. “Grimer!” He rolled up onto the couch next to Ava. “Grimer.” 

Lillie crept back onto the couch. “I-I think it likes you.” 

“I think it wants my pie.” Ava shot back. “Ruined my fucking Jäger too.” 

“Well this is delicious!” Hau had, while Lillie and Ava were distracted by the Grimer, drank both his and Lillie’s drinks. “Got anymore?”

“Do I?” Ava said, a gleam in her eye. 

“Yeah, do you?”

Lillie sighed. “That was a rhetorical question, Hau. Of course she does.” She looked to Ava. “Do you have anything, um, lighter?”

She responded by getting up and going to her cabinet. “I’d give you beer, but I think you’re more of a wine girl.” She took out a bottle of Jack Daniels. “Unfortunately, my mother is not a wine girl. So we’re doing this instead.” Ava returned to the table and poured their drinks. As an afterthought, she poured some on the table in front of the Grimer. “I propose a toast. To new beginnings.”

“To new friends!” Hau shouted.

“To, um, to an adventure.” Lillie said timidly.

“I can’t drink!” Rotom exclaimed.

“Grimer!” 

They humans knocked back their drinks, and Grimer absorbed the drink off the table. Lillie coughed, a little shocked from the drink. “You get used to it.” Ava laughed, watching the other girl cough. “And you can stop if you’d like.”

Lillie, who up until that date hadn’t left the same building and only spoke to three people for three whole months, decided to do one of the two things her mother would never approve of: “Can I have some more?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally posted on Fanfiction when I thought I could write more than two chapters. But I'm on break from school and writing is the only thing that will prevent me from wallowing in self-pity (well, that and watching vine compilations). Don't put too much hope in the fate of this story.


	2. Two: What the fuck is a Frappuccino

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two: In which Ava discovers she’s being followed and is forced into the Island Trials by an old man in flip-flops. Lillie and Hau make a new friend, and Rotom downloads Instagram. A brief Team Skull interlude follows.

Things Ava is used to waking up with: a strange girl in her bed, a minor hangover, no idea where the fuck she was.

Things Ava was not used to waking up with:

“Grimer!”

That.

“Can you not?” She groaned, staring at the Grimer. “Go drink someone else dry.”

“Griiiimer!” Said Grimer.

Ava rolled over, ignoring the Grimer. She focused on Lillie, who was passed out next to her. Reaching over, she gently shook Lillie’s shoulder. “Hey hun, you need to wake up.”

Lillie groaned and pulled the pillow she was hugging closer to her body. “Two more minutes, Gladie…” She croaked. 

Frowning, Ava shook Lillie a bit harder. “Lillie. Wake up before I have Grimer wake you up for me.”

“Grimer!” Grimer exclaimed, as if he thought this was a good idea.

Slowly, Lillie opened her eyes. “Eep!” She squeaked. “How did I-why am I here?”

Ava slid off her side of the bed. “You passed out last night, so I brought you to my room. I figured you didn’t want to hear Hau snore on the couch.” She began to go through the dresser, sifting through the new clothes Kukui had bought for her. “That kid snores like a Snorlax.”

The blonde girl fiddled with the hem of her dress. “We didn’t do anything, did we?” She asked nervously, wincing as she sat up. “And why does my head hurt?”

“Well for one thing, no we did not.” Ava discarded the shirt she had slept in and slipped into a clean one. “And two, that’s a hangover for you.” She shooed the Grimer away from the dresser and pulled out a new pair of pants and underwear. “I’ll make some eggs and do what I can to help you, if you’d like.”

“Eggs?” Lillie repeated. “You don’t have too. I should be going home to the professor’s anyway.” Realizing that Ava was changing in front of her, Lillie flushed a deep red and looked away. “I’ll just go get Hau.”

“Then do this for me.” Ava replied. “I’m pretty sure my mom and Phil are still passed out in the next room, and I kind of don’t like being home alone.” Zipping up her pants, she added, “And maybe y’all can give me a tour of the island or something.” She ushered Lillie out of the room, not shutting the door until Grimer left too. “And you, my friend, need to get out of my house.” 

“Grrrrrimer!”

“I don’t know about a tour,” Lillie said timidly. “Hau maybe, but I don’t really like to leave the house. I prefer to…” She patted around for her bag. Realizing it wasn’t there, she suddenly exclaimed, “Nebby!”

Ava was already preparing breakfast. “You mean the blue cloud?”

Lillie stared at her blankly. Then, “You’ve seen Nebby?”

The brunette nodded at Lillie’s bag, which was resting on the living room floor. A blue cloud was floating above it, asleep. “That thing came out last night, while you and Hau were taking shots. I thought I was hallucinating at first.” She started cracking eggs into a large bowl. “But I guess not. Is that a Pokemon?”

The blonde girl rushed over to the cloud and swooped it into the bag. “Its name is Nebby...well, actually it’s a Cosmog. Professor Kukui said he’s never seen a Pokemon like it before, so I don’t know.” She zipped up the bag and returned to the kitchen area. Scooting onto a barstool, she set her bag on the countertop. “I’ve had Nebby since I washed up on the beach.”

“Out of curiosity,” Ava poured the eggs into a frying pan, “how did you end up on the beach?”

Lillie went quiet. “It’s a long story.” She said, her voice almost a whisper. “I used to live with my mother but...I found out she was doing bad things. She hurt Nebby. So I tried to run away. Somehow, Nebby transported me to the beach. But I can’t remember what happened in between.”

Ava knew a thing or two about destructive parents. “She won’t get you here.” She said, not skipping a beat and stirring the eggs. “I promise.” Ava walked to the cabinet and fished out three plates. A moment later, she sighed and grabbed a fourth one. “What about Hau?” She then asked. “Who does he live with?”

The blonde was still stuck on the sentiment. Hau, Kukui, and Burnet had shown her kindness, but this felt...different “Hau?” Lillie said, zoning back in. “He lives with his grandparents. Kukui says his mother died in childbirth, and his dad skipped town when he was a kid.” 

“So you’re both kind of on your own,” Ava said, pushing a plate across the table to Lillie. “It’s a good thing you have each other then.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Lillie said softly. 

Ava woke Hau up and placed a plate of eggs in front of him on the coffee table. “Breakfast time.”

“Breakfast? My favorite!” Hau was awake in an instant and started gobbling up the eggs. 

“You’re not hungover at all?” Ava asked him, setting another plate in front of Grimer on the floor. She returned to the kitchen counter and began to eat. 

“Nope!” Hau shouted through a full mouth of food. “Oh, Lillie! We need to go into town again to show Ava the malasada shop!” 

“Uhh...I don’t know.” Lillie shook her head. “I’m fine with staying in, with Nebby.”

“Please???” Hau begged, giving her his Lillipup eyes. “It would be more fun with friends! Right Ava?” 

Ava’s attention was elsewhere. Her mother had left a sloppily written note on the refrigerator, detailing how Ava was to go thank the Kahuna in Iki Town for letting them stay there. “How about I meet y’all there?” She suggested, grabbing a bag off the dining room table and stuffing the note inside. “I have to go run an errand for my mom.” Ava threw the Pokeballs and Rotom inside as well, and a couple berries from the fridge. 

“Sounds fun!” Hau exclaimed, still bursting with energy despite waking up five minutes ago. “And Lillie, we can go home if you want, let’s just take Ava out for malasadas first.”

“I suppose if you both want me to, I don’t really have a choice.” Lillie sighed. “All right. We’ll meet you at the malasada shop in Hau’oli.” 

And so the threesome went their separate ways, Lillie and Hau heading for the big city and Ava walking uphill to Iki Town. None of them knew what was in store for them at their destinations, and while the day was set to be a good one, dark forces were looming over head.

\---

Ava, who had grown up running around Kanto via Diglett’s tunnel, was totally fine climbing the hill to Iki Town. Despite being rather heavy set, she was in pretty good shape (much to her mother’s confusion), and had what she called ‘calves of steel’. The climb was just fine for her. 

It was a different story for the Grimer that was following her. When she reached the top on the stairs on the outskirt of Iki Town, Grimer was still mid-way up the hill. The Grimer was set on following her, mainly because she fed him and he wanted more Jäger. 

Ava wasn’t aware of this, however, and happily carried on to Iki Town without a care. Finding the Kahuna turned out to be pretty easy; all she had to do was get distracted and walk into a Tauros. “Mother of Mew!” She exclaimed, staring the Tauros down. “I am so sorry. Please don’t kill me.”

“Ah! Tauros, have you made a new friend?” An older man stepped into view, rubbing the Tauros’s head. “And who might you be?”

“Ava Moon.” She introduced herself. “Are you the Kahuna?”

“That I am!” He boomed. “I am Kahuna Hala. What brings you to Iki Town?”

“My mom, Casey, sent me to talk to you.” Ava explained,

“Ah, yes, I remember now.” Hala said. “Come with me.” He beckoned to her, walking to a large hut in the middle of the village. “She was here last night with Kukui. Your mother is a very nice woman.” Hala commented, ushering Ava into the hut. “She told me that you were very lonely here, and wanted you to have an adventure. Luckily, I found a sparkling stone the same day and had this fashioned.” The man picked up two objects and handed them to Ava. “Congratulations! You can now start your Island Trials!” 

Ava blinked. “What.” 

“The Island Trials!” Hala repeated. “Your mother said you would be interested in starting it!”

“And those are?” She asked, making a mental note to slaughter her drunk mother when she got home.

“Most regions, like your home region of Kanto, have Gym Leagues. In Alola, we have Island Trials!” Hala pointed to the amulet in Ava’s left hand. “That trial amulet will mark you as a trial goer, and will allow you access into certain areas in the region.”

“Trials are like tests, right? Do I have to battle anyone?” Ava asked, slipping the amulet around her bag strap. It didn’t really sound that bad, now that she thought about it. If it meant getting out of the house, then maybe it was worth a shot.

“On occasion, yes.” Hala nodded. “Each Trial has a Trial Captain. Sometimes they ask to battle you, but not always. Instead, you have to battle a Totem Pokemon. Once you win, you are gifted with a Z-Crystal!” He pointed to the second object, a bracelet in her right hand. “The Z-Ring will allow you to harness a Pokemon’s Z-Power, an added ability that can turn a battle on its head!” 

“Well this is great and all,” Ava said, putting on the bracelet, “but I don’t have a Pokemon right now. Kukui gave me Pokeballs, but they’re kind of useless at this point.”

Hala laughed, his laugh echoing in the hut. “Do not worry! I have three Pokemon that I keep in case of new trainers! Let me--”

That’s when the screaming started.

Hala and Ava ran out of the hut to see the cause of the commotion. Confused at first, Ava looked down on the ground and instantly groaned. “You have got to be kidding.”

The villagers were in chaos, running away from a herd of Alolan Grimer. One of them had reached the hut, and was gazing up at Ava adoringly. “Grimer!”

The would-be trainer crouched down to Grimer’s level. “Did you follow me?”

Rotom popped out of Ava’s bag. “My sensors say this is the same Grimer from before!”

“Grimer!” Grimer said in agreement.

“Great. That’s just great.” Ava muttered. “Okay buddy. You’re going to keep following me if I don’t do something about it, right?”

“Grrrimer!” Grimer said.

“I believe the Grimer has bonded with you because of your sharing of alcohol!” Rotom buzzed. “It’s too bad you don’t have a Pokemon. You could battle to catch it!”

“Why battle?” Ava fished around in her bag and pulled out a Pokeball. “You want to go eat food or something?” She asked, holding the Pokeball out to Grimer. 

“Grimer!” Grimer grabbed the Pokeball. Or at least it tried to. The ball slipped from its grasp and fell on the ground. Disappointed, Grimer decided the next best decision would be to roll over it. There was a red glow, and Grimer disappeared into the Pokeball. It shook only once and dinged, signaling that Grimer was captured.

Rotom was still floating next to Ava. “I don’t think it’s supposed to work that way.” Rotom commented. “But whatcha gonna name it?”

Pausing to pick up the Pokeball, Ava said, “I think Jäger is appropriate.” She tapped the ball and released Jäger. “Is there anything else I need now?” She asked Hala, who was still there for some reason. “I need to go meet Hau and Lillie before Hau breaks something.”

This made Hala chuckle. “That Hau is very rambunctious, yes.” He replied. “But yes, you are set. It seems you already have a Pokemon and don’t need a starter.”

“Grimer!” Jäger exclaimed. 

“If you’re heading to Hau’oli, you should look for the trial captain. You’ll know them when you see them.” Hala added. “Now off you go! And enjoy the adventure!” 

Ava, who didn’t really want to spend any more time being stared down by the Tauros that was outside Hala’s hut, made her exit stage right with Rotom and Jäger. She’d have to ask Hau and Lillie to elaborate on the Island Trials. And now she had a whole Pokemon to train. “Rotom, what moves does Jäger know?” She asked the living computer.

“Jäger is level 6 and knows the moves Pound, Poison Gas, and Harden.” Rotom replied. “Though how a Grimer can use Harden I don’t know.”

“How can a Rotom talk?” Ava retorted. “The world may never know.”

Rotom fluttered back into the bag for a moment, and allowed Ava to carry them down the hill. When they got to the bottom, Rotom popped out for another brief moment. “Hey, can we stop at at Sawsbucks when we get to Hau’oli? I need some wi-fi!”

“Why do you need wi-fi?” While Ava was happy to go to Sawsbucks, she couldn’t figure out what the Rotomdex could possibly need internet for. It’s not like it was sentient enough to use apps or anything.

“I need to download Instagram!” Rotom exclaimed.

Ava retracted the last thought. “You what?” She asked, not sure if she heard the creature correctly.

“Bzzt! You heard me!” Rotom floated around to display the app. “If we’re going to see Alola, I gotta document it, see? And it’s not like you can use Facebook for filtering photos!”

“Rotom, I don’t even have an Instagram.” Ava said bluntly. That wasn’t exactly a lie, either. Selene Roth had a fascinating Instagram page, filled with pictures of Saffron City graffiti, selfies of her and her friends, and snapshots of Pokemon in their natural habitat. Her favorite were the rare pictures of Cubone that she took on visits to the Pokemon Tower. But all that was gone now, wiped away from the face of the earth like her old name. “But I mean go for it. Just no pictures with me, mmkay? I don’t like pictures.”

“You gots it!” It chirped. “Oh hey! Lemme snap a pic of that Pikachu real quick! It’ll get loads of likes for sure!” Rotom zipped off to take the picture. 

Ava sighed. “You’re not going to pull out a smartphone on me, are you?” She asked Jäger.

“Grimer!” He exclaimed.

“Right.” She said. Looking at the long route ahead of them, she cracked her knuckles. “I guess we should train on our way, shouldn’t we?” She didn’t wait for Jäger to agree. “Let’s kick some ass.”

\---

Hau and Lillie had already stopped at Sawsbucks, mainly because Hau’s second favorite thing in the world was a Frappuccino, and he couldn’t believe Lillie had never tried one before.

“We never went to Sawsbucks when I was younger.” Lillie had gone with the Vanillish Bean Frappuccino, the safest option on the menu (in her mind, at least). “My brother and I didn’t get to go out much.”

Her companion was halfway through a S'mores Frappuccino, paging through a new edition of Malasada Monthly. “You never mentioned a brother,” Hau commented. “Is he nice?”

“Gladie? Oh, he’s, well…” Lillie paused. “Well he’s not like me. We’re very different people.”

“You’re like the sun and moon!” Hau chirped. “Or Yin and Yang!”

Lillie smiled. “Yes, I suppose so.” 

The door opened behind them, sending a blast of wind their way. The culprit was a pink-haired individual in a sweater vest. “Morning, Anissa!”

“‘Sup Ilima.” The worker greeted the stranger. “The usual?”

“Whoa!” Hau exclaimed. “That’s Captain Ilima!”

Ilima turned. “And you’re the Kahuna’s grandson.” They smiled. Ilima gave the two a wave and went to pay for their drink. A few minutes later, they were sitting at the table with Lillie and Hau. “You must be the professor’s assistant,” Ilima said, attention turned to Lillie. “I’ve heard plenty about you from Kukui.”

“Y-you have?” Lillie stuttered in shock. “I didn’t know he talked about me.”

“He says you’re wonderful with Pokemon. I don’t suppose I’ll see you out Verdant Cavern for a trial soon, will I?” Ilima sipped their drink.

She shook her head rapidly. “Oh heavens no!” Lillie exclaimed, a little louder than she had meant. “Oh, I mean...I’m just not comfortable with Pokemon battles. I don’t like seeing the poor things get hurt like that.”

The pink-haired trainer nodded. “I can understand that. Maybe you’re more fit to be a researcher, like Kukui and his wife.”

“Yeah!” Hau added. “Lillie knows tons about Pokemon. I bet with a little fieldwork, she could become a professor someday!”

“F-fieldwork?” Lillie choked. “Hau, I don’t think that that’s a good idea.”

“Nonsense.” Ilima waved it off. “Fieldwork is always a good idea.” They took another sip of their drink before continuing. “I know. Why don’t you two meet me at Verdant Cavern this afternoon? I’ll be running trials then, but you can do a little research beforehand. I have some errands to run at the Marina first.”

Before Lillie could politely say no, Hau chimed, “We’ll do it!”

“Spectacular.” Ilima smiled. Getting up, they grabbed their drink and began to leave. “See you later then!”

Hau turned to Lillie, grinning. “This is gonna be so fun! Now I can go do my trial and you can meet some new Pokemon!” 

“I don’t know Hau, this could be a bad idea.” Lillie shook her head. 

“Oh shit, y’all are here too?” A confused Ava said from behind them. She walked in with Rotom floating around her. “I thought we were meeting up at the malasada shop.”

“We were! I just needed Lillie to try a Frappuccino first.” Hau explained. “We can get malasadas now, if you want.”

Ava shrugged. “The Kahuna said I should talk to the trial captain. So maybe after that.”

“Oh! Ilima said they’re going to the marina!” Hau informed her. “That’s right past the malasada shop!”

“Hold up.” Ava stopped him. “There’s an agender trial captain?”

“I think that’s the word, yeah.” Hau nodded. “Ilima is a little different from the rest of the captains. My grandpa says nothing but good things about them though.” He got up from his table. “We can take you to meet them!”

Lillie picked up her bag, which was shaking uncontrollably under the table. “Let’s go before Nebby breaks out.” She said hurriedly. 

The three left the Sawsbucks, with Rotom floating behind them, updating their Instagram page. Hau suddenly stopped in the middle of the street. “Wait, Ava, if you’re going to see Ilima, does that mean you’re an official Pokemon trainer? With a Pokemon and everything?”

“Yeah.” She nodded. “Wait. You mean that Jäger isn’t here?” She looked around quickly. “That motherfucker. Jäger!” 

The Grimer oozed out from under the door of Sawsbucks. “Grrrimer!”

“This is Jäger.” She introduced them (or rather reintroduced them) to the Pokemon. “He’s my partner, I guess.”

“This is great!” Hau shouted. “That means I have a challenger!”

“Wait what?”

Stomping his foot on the ground and putting his hand on his hip, Hau shouted, “I challenge you to a Pokemon battle!”

\---

Plumeria was a lot of things, but a mother to the Team Skull grunts was not one of them. She was, however, tired of Guzma’s shit. So instead of listening to him bitch for twelve hours about doing some blonde bimbo’s dirty work, she sat in the med bay and fixed boo-boos.

“Next time, don’t try an pet a wild Salazzle, okay?” She chided her last patient. “I won’t be sorry if it burns you again!”

“Thanks Plumeria!” The girl gushed. She made her way out, slowly, and with the way she was looking at Plumeria, the admin had to wonder if she had pet the Salazzle on purpose or not.

“Idiots. They’re all idiots.” But of course, Guzma found her. “I don’t get why so many of them hurt themselves today!”

“Probably because my dumbass decided to play nurse.” Plumeria grumbled. “Is it the crop top? Is that why they come in?”

“‘Dunno.” Guzma shrugged, pulling up a chair across from Plumeria. “All I see is my dumb sister.” He leaned forward. Voice low, he asked, “Do you think they know?”

“A couple do.” Plumeria said with a smirk. “For good reason.”

“Ack!” Guzma gagged. “And I thought I had problems! Those are like, teenagers!”

Rolling her eyes, Plumeria asked, “Why are you in here anyway?”

“We’re moving out with the Melemele operation. Like, now.” He said, mood changing. “I already have a couple grunts doing groundwork.” 

“You think we got anything good down there?” His sister asked.

“Maybe. They say that hill is a hotspot for sightings.” Guzma got up. “Buuuut I don't know.”

“We better be onto something Guz.” Plumeria warned. “I don't want this to be like the desert.” 

“It won't. I swear.” Guzma kicked his chair down. “Oh, and if that Petrel guy calls? Tell ‘em I’m not here. Damn man keeps jumping down my throat about shit I don't even know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the aforementioned second chapter that I wrote under the pretense of writing more. I can probably write more than this, especially since I have no reason to leave the house in this goddamn four-degree weather. We'll see.


	3. Three: #Gayva

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three: In which Hau and Ava finish their first battle, Ava investigates the Trials, and Ilima gets a taste of Kanto. Later, Plumeria gets a visitor.

“Pikachu! Use Electro Ball!” 

“Shit.” Ava muttered. “Jäger, use Bite!” 

“GRIMER!” Jäger exclaimed, charging at the Pikachu as fast as it could (which, with a base speed of 25, wasn’t very fast). 

Ava didn’t look, afraid of the end result. Jäger, she had learned, was a fuckin’ tank when it came to taking hits. He was a decent attacker, but his crippling speed was an issue. It was pure luck that Hau’s starter was a Rowlett (which did nothing to Jäger). But the Pikachu was proving to be a problem. Even though it was poisoned, it kept going.

“Pika!” Pikachu squeaked, finally succumbing to the poison. It fell down, leaving Jäger the victor.

“Aw man.” Hau returned Pikachu to its Pokéball. “You’re pretty good at this!” He complimented Ava. “Are you sure you’ve never been a trainer before?” 

Ava tossed Jäger an Oran berry and shrugged. “Not something I really did in Saf--the Sevii Islands.” She caught herself last minute. “But whatever. I guess this is something I’m doing now.” Ava tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Probably should’ve gotten a haircut before I left.” She muttered to herself.

Lillie, who had been watching from the safety of the café courtyard, spoke up. “There’s a hair salon nearby. If you want to get it cut, I mean.” She took a hesitant step forward, looking at Jäger warily. “And they can dye it too.”

This caught Ava’s attention. “Really?” 

The blonde girl nodded. “I-I can show you.” She said meekly. Guiding Ava down the street, Lillie pointed out the few shops she knew. There was a clothing shop, a beauty parlor, and the hair salon. Ava took a minute to stop in the former two; at the clothing store, she purchased a new pair of shorts and a tank top. The beauty parlor was giving out lens cases and makeup kits to first-time customers, which Ava immediately took advantage of. “Green’s a good color.” Lillie commented, watching Ava select a new contact color. “On you, I mean. It’s nice.” 

Ava gave Lillie a soft smile. “Thanks hun.” She rooted around in the new makeup case. “Which lip color do you think would work? I don’t really do makeup stuff, so I’m fuckin’ clueless.” 

Lillie peeked into the case. “Maybe the pink?” She quietly suggested. 

“Thanks.” Ava applied it cautiously. “Okay, now for that hair salon.” The girls exited the beauty parlor and went one shop over. Inside, Lillie helped set Ava up with a styling appointment. Ava [shamelessly] flirted with the hair stylist as the Alolan girl cut Ava’s hair. Without the bun, Ava’s hair fell to her mid-back. The stylist cut it to her shoulders and dyed it a lighter, ash brown. 

“This look really compliments your face.” The stylist chirped, finishing the dye job. “Anything else we can do for you?”

Ava grinned at her. “Nothing with my hair, at least.” 

The stylist blushed. “Um, that’s going to be 2,500.” She walked Ava up to the front where Lillie was waiting. 

Paying for her haircut, Ava was oblivious to Lillie’s staring. “Ready to go?” She asked, dropping her wallet in her bag. 

“Huh? Oh, yes.” The blonde girl stood up quickly. “Let’s go.” She escorted Ava out of the building. Hau and Jäger were waiting outside, bonding over a malasada. “Now what?” 

“Time to meet Ilima!” Hau exclaimed. “They’re at the Marina, which is right next to the malasada shop.”

Ava recalled Jäger into his Pokéball. “Let’s get a move on, then.” She offered her arm to Lillie, who was still a bit unsure of walking around the city. “You seem to know a lot about Hau’oli. Do you spend a lot of time here in your free time?” Ava asked, taking in the scenery.

“Hau does. I don’t really like to go out.” Lillie replied. Reaching the Pokémon Center, Lillie stopped to gaze out at the water. “But it is beautiful out.”

Ava glanced from the sea to the girl. “You’re right about that.” She murmured. 

Somewhere nearby, a boombox began to blast...music? Ava couldn’t make out what it was, but it sounded less like music and more like kids shouting rhythmically into microphones. “Eek!” Lillie squealed. “That’s...that’s Team Skull!”

“Team _what_?” Ava asked, looking over Lillie at the source of the noise. She let go of the girl and walked forward. There were two blue-haired grunts with skull caps, rapping at a pink-haired individual. 

“Ilima needs our help!” Hau exclaimed. “Come on!”

“Ah! Hau and Lillie! And...you.” The pink-haired person or Ilima, as Ava assumed, greeted the trio. “Tell me, can any of you tell these ruffians to step off my territory?”

One of the rappers turned to see Ava. “Don’t yo! That’s a no-no! When we beat you, we’re gonna get fro-yo!”

The second looked at his friend. “Wait, really?”

“Nah Ken, I just needed a rhyme.” The first responded. “Do they even have fro-yo here in this lame-ass city?”

“I dunno.” The second grunt, Ken, looked at the natives. “Is there fro-yo here?”

Hau frowned. “Why would we want to help Team Skull? All you guys do is rap badly and steal berries from people!”

The unnamed grunt gasped. “Ah, bro. Did you just--bro did you just say my rhymes ain’t fine?” He grabbed a Pokéball from his belt. “Drowzee, come out an show these fools how we kick it, Team Skull style!”

Ava held back a laugh. “Hau, step back. I got this.” She lazily tossed the Pokéball out, releasing Jäger. “Bite.” She ordered. 

“Griiiimer!” Jäger reached for the Drowzee, jaw open. 

“Zee?” The Drowzee cried. It was down in seconds, with Jäger chewing away at its yellow skin. 

Jäger soon realized that the Drowzee wasn’t food. “Griiime.” He turned back to Ava. Sliding over the pavement, he tugged at Ava’s bag. “Grime?”

“Give me a sec.” She pushed him off. “Look, Ken and Not-Ken.” Ava addressed the Team Skull Grunts. “You guys can back off, ‘kay? This,” she paused, examining Ilima, “incredibly lovely human being doesn’t need your shit.” 

“Fine!” Not-Ken recalled his Drowzee. “And my name is Heath! Not Not-Ken!” Heath the Team Skull Grunt dropped the microphone on the sidewalk and stormed off. 

“Next time you’re done-zo, son-zo.” Ken said to Ava as he followed his teammate down the street.

Lillie, who was cowering behind Hau, didn’t speak until the Skull grunts were well on their way to Route 2. “Wow.” She said quietly. “You handled them like nothing.”

Ava bent over to feed Jäger another berry. “Eh. They didn’t pose that much of a threat.” She stood up, brushed herself off, and turned her attention to Ilima. “Are you okay?”

The trial captain strode over to the trio. “I’m better now, thanks to you.” They said, smiling at Ava. “You are?”

“Ava Moon.” She stretched her hand out for Ilima to shake. “Is it safe to assume you’re the Trial Captain?”

“Captain Ilima, at your service.” Ilima took Ava’s hand at kissed it (in a gesture that made Lillie internally cringe). “I don’t suppose you’re interested in challenging my trial, are you?”

 _That’s not the only thing I’m interested in_ Ava thought to herself. “Among other things.” She replied. It still wasn’t very smooth of a response, but Ava didn’t really care. She knew her brain didn’t function well around attractive people. 

Ilima chuckled. “Well then.” They nodded up to Route 2. “I’ll meet you up at Verdant Cavern. Hau and Lillie are welcome to attend as well.”

“We’re going. Definitely.” Lillie spoke up, shocking pretty much everyone. “We wouldn’t miss Ava’s trial for the world.”

\---

Route 2 was, much to Jäger’s delight, filled with berry trees. The fields were bright swatches of green and filled with flowers. It was a welcome change for Ava, who had previously spent most of her time in a Saffron apartment building. The trainer-Pokémon duo battled trainers as they came upon them, but stayed away from wild Pokémon. All the while, Rotom floated around the pathway, taking photos of stray Cutieflies and the occasional Growlithe. 

Lillie led the pack, walking with her head held high and Nebby bouncing beside her. This newfound courage was becoming of her, and Ava couldn’t help but wonder what Lillie would be like if she was this way all the time.

And then a gust of wind blew Lillie’s hat off, and that was pretty much all over.

“I got it!” Hau ran after the hat, nearly tripping over a Yungoos at one point. “Almost...got it!” Jumping forward, Hau snatched the hat out of the air. He landed (with a painful thud) in front of a wide cavern. 

“Welcome to Verdant Cavern, home of the Trial of Captain Ilima.” Ilima was leaning on the trial gate. “Glad you all arrived safely.”

“For the most part!” Rotom buzzed, taking a snapshot of Hau crashed on the ground. 

“That’s enough from you.” Ava said, ushering Rotom into her bag. “So, what. I have to battle inside this cave or something?” She dropped a berry into Jäger’s eager mouth. “And there’s a Totem Pokémon at the end I have to take on.” 

“Indeed.” Ilima pushed themself off of the Trial gate and walked Ava inside the cave. It was dark and musty inside, with water dripping from stalactites on the ceiling. There were small burrows in the ground and nests of bats along the walls. “Inside this cave, you will face three wild Pokémon that are hiding in those dens.” Ilima began to explain. Nodding to the eastern part of the cave, Ilima added, “Up ahead lies the Totem’s den. Once you beat the wild Pokémon, you must journey there to grab a Normalium Z. Of course, the Totem Pokémon won’t let that be too easy.” They chuckled, turning back to Ava. “Are you up for the challenge?”

“Why not. Is there any sort of reward I can get out of this?” She asked, ushering Jäger forward. 

Ilima smirked. “That can be arranged later. Good luck.” They walked back outside to meet Lillie and Hau, leaving Ava and Jäger inside. 

“This better be good.” Ava looked down at her new partner. “Let’s get a move on, partner.”

Jäger slunk off to investigate one of the dens, and was quickly greeted by a Yungoos. The sludge Pokémon defeated the rodent easily, and slid along the cave floor after Ava. “Grime!” Jäger bit another oncoming Yungoos in the head. 

“Yeah, something seems off about this to me too.” Ava said to her partner. She tread carefully, an uneasy feeling washing over her. “You’ve fought two of those things, right? So the third should be up--”

“Wait just a minute yo!”

“Oh god not again.”

“Team Skull comin’ in hot! Show you what we got!” The Team Skull grunts, Heath and Ken, jumped out at Ava from behind a stalagmite. They were covered in dirt, but still raring to go. “Here to sabotage your trial! We’re mean and vile!”

Ava looked from them to the rock, and back at them. “How long were you guys hiding there?”

“We’ve been here for at least 20 minutes!” Ken (or at least, the one she thought was Ken, for they were practically identical) shouted. “And I really need a shower, so let’s get this over with!”

Heath called upon his Drowzee, but that was over pretty quickly. “You need to remember your type match-ups, man.” Ava remarked as Grimer bit down on Drowzee. “Dark beats Psychic.”

“Maaan.” Heath whined. “I was countin’ on you catching something weak. Or like, cowering in terror at our sneak attack.”

Ken sniffled and kicked at a rock on the ground. “The boss’s gonna be pissed that we keep failin’ man. We haven’t even gotten to that meadow!” The grunt began to tear up. “What if we get kicked out? Then what’re we gonna do?”

Grabbing his partner’s shoulders, Heath exclaimed, “Keep it together bro! We’re not going down without a fight!”

“Ahem.” Ava coughed, trying to get their attention. “What’s this meadow you’re talking about?”

Jäger trudged past the Skull Grunts, fixated on one of the dens. A Gumshoos slept inside it, unaware of its impending doom. “Grimee?” Jäger shouted at Ava, as if he were asking for permission.

“Yeah, go for it.” She shouted back. Turning to the grunts, she continued her previous train of thought. “Look, you guys seem pretty desperate. Is that right?”

“No!” Ken exclaimed. Then, as an afterthought, “Yeah.”

Heath put an arm around his buddy. “We got sent to Melemele because we’re rookies, and the boss doesn’t really care about this place. But our mission is to get into that meadow on the southern part of the island and investigate the weird shit goin’ on there.”

“But we ain’t got a way past those rocks down there!” Ken added. “And we were tryna’ scare up some muscle down at the marina, but that didn’t work.”

Ava sighed. “How about this. If you guys promise to stop messing with trial goers around here, I’ll help you into that meadow of yours. Okay? And I can get you set up with a hot meal and stuff while you wait.”

“You-you’d do that? For us?” Ken asked. “A bunch a no-good, rotten Skullings?”

Ava looked over their heads at Jäger, who was still fighting the Gumshoos. “Yeah, why not. Everyone deserves a second chance.” She pulled a notebook and a pen out of her bag. Scrawling her address on a page, she handed it to Heath. “You go here and tell the woman that you’re friends with Ava. She’ll take care of you while I’m gone.”

“Thanks bro!” Heath pulled Ava into an emotional hug. “You’re an honorary sister in our book!”

“Yeah sure whatever.” Ava patted him on the back. “Now I need to finish up this trial, okay?” 

“You got it!” Ken and Heath saluted her, high-fived each other, and slid down the hill inside the cave. 

“Grimer?” Jäger chowed down on an Oran berry he had found after defeating the Gumshoos. 

Ava shrugged, meeting him at the top of the hill. “I gave you a chance, didn’t I? They seemed like they deserved one too.” She and Jäger exited through the hole in a wall of the cave. The duo was greeted with sunlight, and a small pasture. In the middle was an old, wooden podium. Something sparkled inside it, drawing Ava in. “So that’s a Z-Crystal.” She said softly. “Let’s grab it and get...out…”

Something terrifying roared as she spoke, and a beast jumped down from a ledge. Blocking their exit, the giant Gumshoos let out a terrifying growl. “Shoooooos!” It screeched. 

“Well shit.” Ava muttered. “Hey Rotom, what level is that thing?” 

Rotom buzzed to life. “The totem Pokémon is level 12.” They reported. 

“And what level is Jäger now?”

“With the extra training you did, Jäger is level 14.” Rotom buzzed. “Can I take a picture of the battle?”

“Go for it.” Ava said, stepping out of Rotom’s view. “Jäger, use Poison gas!”

Jäger emitted a purple gas that enveloped Gumshoos. The large rodent flinched, but gnawed at a berry. “Shooos!” It growled, unharmed.

“Shit. That thing had a Pecha berry.” Ava muttered.

What’s more, the creature had help. A Yungoos ran out from the cave and flung itself at Jäger. Jäger spit out another Poison Gas, effectively poisoning the two rodents. “Grimer!” He cried.

“Don’t worry about that rat, get rid of the totem first!” Ava ordered. “Use Bite!”

Jäger was hit before he could attack. The Gumshoos used Superfang, having Jäger’s health. Jäger reacted in time by biting it, and the Gumshoos was weakened by the poison. The Yungoos hit Jäger in the side with a Tackle, lowering his health even more. 

“Jäger!” Ava exclaimed. She searched her bag in a frenzy for some sort of healing item. “Here!” She grabbed a Sitrus berry that they had found under a tree and tossed it to her partner. 

“Grrimer!” Jäger ate it happily. 

“Use Harden!” Ava ordered. The Superfangs would still hurt, but keeping his defense up would at least slow the Yungoos’s damage. “Now use Bite again!”

The Gumshoos met Jäger again with a Superfang, but another Bite and some poison damage did the trick this time. The Totem Pokémon fell to the ground with a thud, leaving the Yungoos unprotected. It charged at Jäger with a Hyperfang. “Griime!” Jäger cried, his health dangerously low. He retaliated as quick as possible, biting down on the Yungoos and throwing it to the ground. 

“Jäger, are you okay?” Ava ran to her partner’s side. “Shit, please be okay. Rotom, what’s his health look like?”

“Bzzt.” Rotom scanned Jäger. “His HP is at 2, but he’s still okay.” 

“Thank Mew.” Ava sighed, cradling the sludge Pokémon. “Don’t scare me like that.”

Jäger gave his trainer a toothy grin. “Grrrrimer!”

Ava returned him to his Pokéball so he could rest. Then, stepping carefully around the fallen Totem Gumshoos, she retrieved the Normalium Z from the pedestal. “Would you look at that.” She said to herself. “I actually did something for once.”

\---

Hau and Lillie had wanted a full explanation as to why there were Team Skull grunts running out of the cavern. Ava promised them one, but only after Hau completed his trial. He and Ilima went inside, leaving Lillie and Ava out to examine the Z-Crystal. 

“It’s beautiful.” Lillie said, staring in awe. 

“You should hold onto it.” Ava replied. “It suits you.”

Once Hau completed the test, Ilima invited the three back to their house in Hau’oli. Hau was immediately distracted by the kitchen, where he and Lillie made conversation with Ilima’s parents. Ilima and Ava retreated upstairs to Ilima’s room. 

“How long have you been a captain?” Ava asked, leafing through one of the many bookshelves in the room.

Ilima thought about it for a minute. “Only a year or so. I was studying in Kalos for two years before that. When I returned, the local captain had retired. I was just qualified enough to be put in charge.” They sat down on their bed, pushing the green striped covering out of the way. “What about you? Where did the wind take you before Alola?”

Ava bit the inside of her cheek. “Just around the Sevii Isles.” She replied. “My mom and I lived on Three Island, but I always to explore the other islands.” Sitting next to the captain, she sighed. “Didn’t really happen. We just picked up and moved here.”

Ilima placed their hand over Ava’s. “It seems this is your chance to explore now. Alola isn’t the Sevii Isles, but it does come with its charms.”

Ava closed the gap between them swiftly, curious to discover the charms Ilima spoke of.

\---

Someone was knocking on the door of the Team Skull Mansion, and it was pissing Guzma off. “Why haven’t any of you losers opened the fucking door yet?” He shouted, storming down the staircase. “It’s right there, and you goons are just clownin’ around!” Flinging the door open, he shouted at the visitor, “What the hell do you want?” 

“Well hey, Guzma!” 

The Bug-type expert wasn’t really sure what he was expecting when he opened the door, but this definitely wasn’t it. “...Molayne?” Guzma scratched his head. “What’cha want with us?”

“I uh, was wondering if your sister’s around.” Molayne explained, shoving something behind his back. “I know we haven’t talked in a while, what with you two running a gang and all.” 

“Right.” Guzma looked at the Steel-type trainer with disbelief. “I can get her.” He stepped back into the mansion and shouted up the staircase at Plumeria. “‘Ey Plumey! You got a visitor!”

“Who is it?” Plumeria shouted back at him, leaning over the stair rails. 

“Uh, Molayne.” Gumza responded. 

“Mo?” The Team Skull admin repeated. “Hold on.” She ran into her room and slammed the door, reappearing minutes later with a non-Team Skull crop top and black eyeliner. She slid down the banister and almost pushed Guzma out of the doorway. “It’s been a while.” 

Molayne chuckled. “It has, hasn’t it.” He unveiled the object he had been hiding from Guzma. “I saw these in Maelie and thought of you.” 

Plumeria gasped. It was a bouquet of pink and yellow flowers, wrapped with a black bow. “Are those plumerias?” She asked, taking the flowers from him.

“Yeah. They’re pretty rare around these parts.” He chuckled, bouncing on his heels anxiously. “Do you like them?”

She tried to hide her excitement. “I...they’re okay.” Plumeria looked back at her old friend. “You, uh, you want to come in for a drink? I was thinking of pouring myself a cup of Tapu Cocoa.” She bit her lip, and added, “Only if you want.”

Molayne checked his phone. “Why not? I have some spare time.” 

The Poison expert led him inside to the team’s rather damaged kitchen, where she heated up some milk and stirred in the Cocoa powder. “How’ve ya been?”

The blonde trainer sat down carefully in a chair that already looked broken. “Pretty good. I passed the captain status down to my nephew.” 

“Lil’ Sophocles?” Plumeria handed him a cup. “Sweet kid. He still messin’ around with electronics?”

“When isn’t he?” Molayne laughed. He took a long drink, savoring the flavor of the cocoa. “You still make a mean cup of cocoa.” He complimented her. “Are things still crazy around here?”

Plumeria thought of the Melemele operation, and how that Lusamine woman was breathing down their necks. “Yeah, you could say that.” She muttered. “Guzma’s always finding something to freak out about.” Setting her cup on the little green table, she sighed. “It’s never quiet ‘round here. There’s always some problem that needs to be solved.”

“And you always have to solve it.” Molayne finished her train of thought. “I completely understand.” He smiled at her. “You were always the one with a solution.”

“They didn’t always work.” She replied, looking out the kitchen window. “But yeah, I guess I was.” They let the silence sink in for a minute, enjoying their cocoa in peace. “Don’t tell anyone I said it, but I miss ya.” Plumeria said quietly. 

“I’ve miss you too.” Molayne smiled. 

A grunt took this sweet moment and crushed it. “Aye Plumeria, the boss wants to see ya. Something about the dumbasses on Melemele.”

Molayne stood up. “I should be going anyway.” He finished his drink and placed the mug in the sink. “It was good to see you.” 

Plumeria nodded and watched him leave. The front door slammed shut, and Plumeria muttered,“You too.” The admin stood and took her cocoa upstairs, following the only slightly confused grunt to her brother’s room. “What’s up?”

Guzma greeted her with a sly grin. “You like him.” He teased as she sat on his bed. 

“What? I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She growled, sipping her cocoa angrily. “Now what the hell is going on?”

Her older brother sat down on his throne, playing around with a Buginium Z. “I got a report from those idiots on Melemele. They said the meadow was blocked by some rocks.” 

“So...what?” Plumeria was confused. “The mission’s a no-go?”

Guzma leaned forward, grinning. “This is where it gets interestin’. They say some trainer girl with a Grimer is gonna help them get in.” 

Plumeria set the cup down on one of Guzma’s side tables and lay back on the bed. “Why would she do that?”

“Dunno.” Guzma shrugged. “Point is, we’re about to crack this whole Necrozma deal, and we don’t even have to get our hands dirty.”

“You think the girl knows how dangerous this is gonna be?” Plumeria asked. 

“From what I hear, this kid’ll be able to handle it.” Guzma shook it off. As bad as it sounded, he wasn’t too concerned with the life of this random trainer. She was going to help him get out of debt with Aether, whether she knew it or not. At the end of the day, that’s what mattered to him. With Aether off his back, he would be safe to run Team Skull how he wanted. His sister would get the treatments she needed. They wouldn’t have to go back to that scumbag outside of Hau’oli, and they could continue keeping kids off the streets and out of harm’s way. And if Guzma had to crack some skulls to accomplish all that, it was a small price he was willing to pay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So don't expect grandiose battle descriptions from me. As you might already have noticed, that's not really my thing. 
> 
> Also: This is rated Mature for obvious reasons. I know the point I left Ava at was more PG cut to black than hardcore R, but trust me. It can get worse.


	4. It's...Not Dead?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Four: In which Lillie makes a decision, Jäger baffles Hala, and Ava begins her life of crime as a Team Skull Enforcer. Kind of.

 

Ava hadn’t seen much in Kanto, so arguably speaking, everything in Alola was more beautiful than her home. But the Melemele Meadow? So far, that took the cake for the most gorgeous thing she had ever seen. Walking into the small cove, Ava was met with buzzing Cutieflies and the sweet aroma of yellow nectar. Moonlight shone down on the flowers and was reflected off of them by dewdrops. There were few patrons in the meadow, none of which looked to be trainers. This was good. A way for Ava to relax before her next challenge.

Of course, she was also there because Nebby had gotten stuck on a cliff and Lillie was too scared to climb up it, so that sucked.

“This cloud is going to be the death of us both, Lillie.” Ava sighed as she gazed up at Nebby. “One day, it’s going to float itself to somewhere insanely dangerous, and we’re both going to die trying to save it.” She handed Lillie her old brown messenger bag. “Do me a solid and watch Jäger for me.”

“Grrrrime!” Jäger nuzzled Lillie’s leg. 

The blonde girl froze up. “That was so gross.” She whispered meekly. 

Ava cracked her knuckles and headed toward the cliff. She slid down a small slope and into the meadow, immediately pausing to enjoy the moment. The flowers tickled her calves as she walked. Yellow bird Pokémon occasionally popped up, and Ava had to tread carefully around them.

“Corioo!” One cooed when Ava stopped to pet it. It nipped playfully at her fingers. 

“Calm down, sweets.” Ava chuckled. “What in Mew’s name are ya?” 

Rotom was having a field day flitting around and snapping photos of everything. It zoomed real close to the bird that Ava was petting, capturing only the bird in the photo as it headbutted Ava’s hand. “This is an Oricorio. There are four varieties of the species, each having adapted to the island’s environment based on the food they needed to eat.”

“Holy shit. Darwin wrote  _ Origin of the Species _ on these things.” Ava replied. She left her small friend to continue looking for Nebby but marveled at the world around her. Alola was a wonder to behold.

The blue cloud was playing around with a Caterpie and a Cottonee at the top of a hill, squeeing happily as it bounced about. Ava scooped it up into her arms and began to trek back. Jäger and Lillie were waiting for her at the entrance of the meadow, her Pokémon happily eating flowers and Lillie looking onward in disgust. 

“Nebby!” Lillie exclaimed, ushering her friend into her arms. “Don’t scare me like that, okay?”

The little Cosmog hummed in apology, cuddling into Lillie’s chest.

“Can’t stay mad at that little guy.” Ava chuckled. “C’mon, Hau is waiting for us.” 

“Cori!!!” There was a squawk behind them. One of the Oricorio from the meadow jumped at them and snatched Lillie’s hat. It flew over their heads and out of the field. A shout from Hau could be heard outside, and as Lillie and Ava rushed to meet him, they found Hau in distress as the bird circled overhead. 

Lillie jumped at it wildly, trying to keep her dress down while reaching for her hat. “Give it back!” She shouted.

Hau looked at it, amused. “Maybe you could catch it and see what happens.”

“C-catch it?” Lillie shook her head wildly. Shaking, she grabbed at her bag where Nebby was laying snuggly inside. “I don’t have any Pokéballs, and I couldn’t really be a trainer. I’m not strong enough.”

The Oricorio landed on the ground in front of her, cocking its head to the side. The bird placed the hat on the ground in front of Lillie, and began to coo. She snatched her hat off the ground and put it on her head. The bird continued to coo and hopped closer, nipping curiously at the hem of Lillie’s skirt. “Coorio.” She butted her head against Lillie’s thigh, the soft feathers tickling the girl’s legs.

Ava grinned. “I think she wants you to catch her.” The experienced trainer handed Lillie a Pokéball. “Just try it and see what happens.” 

Lillie took it, albeit reluctantly, and tapped it on the head of the Oricorio. The bird disappeared into the ball and with three shakes, the Pokéball clicked. Picking it up, Lillie stared at the ball. “This is...my Pokémon.” She said quietly. “I mean, I have Nebby, but this...I caught a Pokémon.”

“Are you gonna name her?” Hau asked.

“Ellie.” Lillie decided quickly. She released Ellie and put the Pokéball in her bag. “Are you okay with that? Ellie?”

Ellie cooed happily. She jumped upward onto Lillie’s shoulder, chirping in her trainer’s ear and getting cozy.

Rotom buzzed around Lillie and snapped a photo of her. “Wow! You two look like two peas in a pod!”

“You think?” She squeaked.

Ava ruffled Ellie’s feathers. “Definitely.”

“Ahoy there!” The three trainers turned to see Kukui, who was jogging down Route 3 with Illima behind him. “How are you three doing? Illima told me you two beat their trial, what a party!”

“That’s one way to put it,” Ava said to herself, remembering her “Reward” from Illima.

Illima caught up with the group and smiled when they saw Ava. “Ava beat the totem Pokémon quite handily.”

Hau, not wanting to be left out and not realizing there was something going on, exclaimed, “I did too! It was pretty great!”

Kukui nodded. “So that means you two are headed out to fight Ole’ Hala in the Grand Trial, eh?”

“Right, the Grand Trial.” Truth was, Ava wasn’t too excited about that. She, like Lillie, wasn’t keen on battles, and Jäger struggled a bit when it came to fighting types. But completing the Grand Trial would mean she could leave Melemele island, and that was what was worth it. She didn’t hate it there, but the more she stayed in one place, the more she was worried that someone would find her. Besides, there were four islands in Alola. What was the point of hiding in a new region if she couldn’t explore it?

\---

Usually, the Grand Trial is an exciting battle between trainers, showcasing the bond between trainer and Pokémon alike. For Hau and Hala, that was their Grand Trial. Pikachu danced around Mankey and Makuhita with ease, getting knocked out at the last second by Crabrawler’s powerful Z-Move. Hau’s newly evolved Dartrix, however, gave the crab a run for his money, quickly taking him out with a well-timed Razer Leaf.

Ava’s battle with Hala was not this beautiful dance.

“Poison Gas!” Ava shouted as Jäger belched out the toxin at Makuhita. The Grimer spent all of the battle with Mankey using Harden, and two Poison Fang’s later the fighting monkey was down for the count. Makuhita tried using a Sand Attack to lower Jäger’s accuracy, but the living sludge wasn’t fazed. The poison had already seeped into Makuhita. Ava wasn’t too concerned about the Sand Attacks either, but she’d have to wait to take care of it until the Makuhita was gone. It was time to sit back and play the waiting game. “Use Bite!” Ava would call, knowing that even if Jäger managed to hit his opponent, the dark move wouldn’t do much. She could at least pretend like she cared.

“Maku?” The poison finally felled the beast, and Hala swapped his second Pokémon for his ace.

“Now, Crabrawler! I call on you to use your Z-Move! Hahh!” Hala began his intricate dance, summoning Crabrawler’s Z-Move power. The crab launched into the air and punched Jäger with a glowing fist. The power blew everything back, and the surrounding crowd oohed and ahhed as the dust began to settle.

Jäger sat there, not blinking. 

“Rotom, how much damage did Jäger take?” Ava asked her digital partner.

“Jäger lost ten total hit points, out of fifty.” Rotom buzzed.

“Rad.” Ava reached into her bag and grabbed a purple-pink pill. She beckoned Jäger over and tossed the capsule into his mouth. “All right. Poison Fang.”

After a few more rounds, those purple-tinged jaws were the last thing Crabrawler would see.

\---

Hala had a hoot rewarding Ava with her Fightinium Z, mostly because she had a rough time getting the moves down. He also gave her the ability to ride a Tauros, something that she recognized as the Alolan equivalent of Rock Smash.

“With it, you can even visit Ten Carat Hill!” Hala explained to her as she adjusted on top of the bull. “They say you can even find the rare Flyinium Z!”

Ava thanked him, pretending to be excited about some rock that her Poison/Dark type couldn’t use. Hala sent her off to tell her mother that she was going to Akala Island, but Ava knew her mother wouldn’t care. She had other business.

“Yo, this soup is the dopest!” Ken said to Casey Moon, slurping down a bowl of chicken noodle soup.

Heath was on his second bowl. “Mama Moon, you’re an honorary Skull Admin in our books! Maybe even the boss.”

Ken thwaked his partner upside the head. “Don’t let Guz hear you say that!”

Casey snickered at the exchange. “It’s really no trouble boys, I’m just glad to see Avalon making friends.”

Ava stared at her mother, mouthing the word ‘Avalon’ at her. “We have to get going soon.” She said, trying to usher the Skull grunts out of her house. “I’ll meet you outside.”

Ken and Heath thanked Casey and headed outside, leaving the two alone. Casey smiled at them, waving as they left. She looked at her daughter. “So what’s this I hear about you leaving?”

“Mom, I can’t stay here for the rest of my life,” Ava said, sitting on a stool at the counter, “and you know that. Besides, if I travel, maybe I can get stronger. Protect you.”

“Honey! We have all the protection we need here.” Casey gestured wildly at the room she shared with Looker. “Philip is here. The International Police have done everything to hide us. If you go around, travelling the region, someone is going to see you and figure it out.” She began to open a bottle of tequila. “Come on, let me pour you and your friends a drink.”

“Mom.” Ava swiped the bottle out of her mother’s hands. “I am going. And you can’t stop me.” Ava threw the bottle in her bag and slid off the chair. “I’ll call you when I dock in Akala.” She slammed the door before her mom could respond.

\---

The entrance to Ten Carat Hill was blocked by something Ava could only describe as a “bigass rock”. The ride Tauros smashed it with ease, letting Ava and the skullings inside the cavern. It was dank and dusty inside with Zubat flitting about; Ava nearly tripped on a Roggenrola or two as she navigated the pathways. Ken and Heath rapped excitedly at each other, but Ava was always two steps ahead of them and not involved in their beats. She had never been to Mount Moon, nor had she ever successfully gotten through Rock Tunnel without the aid of flash. And Ten Carat Hill was nothing like Diglett’s cave, either, so the environment was totally new.

“What are you guys looking for, anyway?” Ava asked the Grunt Duo as they rounded another corner.

“There’s a meadow somewhere ‘round here. Rumor has it that a legendary Pokémon sleeps there.” Ken chattered. “We’re not tryna catch it for reals, but the boss man wants us to scope it out to see if it’s there. Then he’ll swoop in and BLAM! Catch it right up.”

Heath’s eyes lit up. “Yeah! Then we won’t be in debt to that Lusa-chick! Guz can run Team Skull like a real organization! Plumey can...shit I don’t know what she actually likes to do. But it’ll be great!”

“What exactly is Team Skull anyway?” Ava asked absentmindedly.

Ken and Heath looked at each other with glee. “Lay the beat K!” Heath shouted. Ken started to beatbox, while Heath bobbed his head to the rhythm. “Aight. Yo, Team Skull comin’ in hot!”

“You know it!” Ken interjected.

“What up everybody, my name is Heath! Part of Team Skull, we can’t be beat! Guzma is the bossman, he makes all our dope plans! Plumeria’s an admin! She knows ‘bout fashion! Team Skull’s the best! Better than the rest! A place for everybody, no matter your sex!”

“Equal opportunity son!”

“UH! Gender’s a construct! So is being a prep! We don’t take preppy losers, unless they ask nicely!”

“Eat it, Gladion!”

“This one crazy lady, she offered us funding! We fixed a building but ran out of funding! Uh! I rhymed funding with funding! That’s no fun! Now we gotta find a Pokémon and pay off our debts!”

“Necrozma!”

“Team Skull, OUT!” Heath finished his rap, with Ken doing some fancy mixing at the end. They landed in ridiculous poses, throwing gang signs up. Heath, out of breath, asked Ava, “What’d you think?”

Ava was at a loss for words. “It was...Informative.” She gave them a pity clap. “Necrozma, is that the name of the Pokémon you need to find?” The grunts both nodded. “All right then.”

After the performance, the three continued exploring the cavern. Eventually, they came to a light at the end of the tunnel. Ken and Heath ran toward it eagerly, breathing in the fresh air and marveling at the sight. The hollow was beautiful, with rolling grassy hills and Pokémon scurrying about. In the center of the hollow sat an old altar, with a blue stone in the middle. Ava approached it carefully, remembering the last time she found an altar with a Z-Crystal. Once she was sure there weren’t any totem Pokémon around, she took the stone. It had a set of wings engraved on it, and when Ava wrapped her fingers around it she felt a sudden gush of wind surround her. “Whoa,” Ava whispered to herself.

Ken and Heath scampered around, searching comically for the legendary that was said to reside in the cave’s hollow. They returned to Ava with arms filled with items, which they dropped onto the ground unhappily. “All we can find are these dumb nuggets and blue rocks,” Ken explained, frowning. 

Recognizing the engraving, Ava picked some of the blue rocks up. “Guys, these are Z-Crystals. You should seriously hold onto these.” 

“But we don’t have any flying types! It’d be useless.” Heath replied. “ ‘Sides, the Boss wouldn’t want them either. He collects Buginium Z.”   
  
Ava shook her head and dropped one into each of their pockets. “Keep it. Just in case.” She also made them pick up some of the nuggets they dropped, telling them that they could sell the nuggets to help their team. Happy to not return completely empty-handed, the trio made their way back to the entrance out on Route 1, near Kukui’s research station. They made small talk on their way, as Ava asked them questions about Team Skull and they, in turn, tried to ask her about her life. For the most part, Ava avoided answering questions. 

As they neared Hau’oli city, Ken and Heath explained they had to leave to take a boat from a hidden port. There was a bay on the northeastern edge of the island, hidden from tourists by a winding cavern. The Team Skull boat was docked on that beach. The Grunt Duo bid Ava a tearful goodbye as they began to head off. “We’ll put in good word for you! Maybe the boss’ll make ya an admin!” Heath said to her, hugging the trainer tightly. 

“You do that,” Ava said, not really sure if she wanted their boss to hear about her. After watching them run off on Route 2, Ava turned and headed down to the Marina. She briefly considered returning to her house to say goodbye to her mom, but stopped. Her mother had made it clear that she wanted to stay on Melemele. And if she wanted to drink her problems away, then that was her thing. Ava wanted more.

\---

“Tide Song Hotel? You want us to go on a vacation?” Guzma looked at his sister. She lay sprawled on her bed, with Salandit curled up against her chest. “We’re already tryna’ pay off our debt to Lusamine, we can’t pay for this!”  


“Guz, you could walk into that place and sleep there for days and no one would notice.” Plumeria yawned. “Please? You could use a break and I definitely need one.” She scratched her partner under her chin, and the Salandit hummed in pleasure. “And maybe we could go check out the ruins there for the Tapu.”  


Guzma’s cell phone began to rattle, and he answered it with an eye roll. “What’s up, losers?"  
  
“Boss! Boss! We got into the meadow!” Ken shouted excitedly through the phone. “There wasn’t a Necrozma, but we found a lot of nuggets! And some Z-Crystals!”  
  
“But no legendary?” Guzma sighed. “Fine. Cool. Meet us in Hea Hea City and we’ll talk from there.” He hung up on Ken and Heath. “I guess the meadow was a bust.”

“All the more reason to take a break!” Plumeria replied. “Come on, please Guz?”

Guzma was really bad at saying no to his little sister, especially when she used her Lillipup-eyes. “Fine. But no hustling patrons, okay?”

Plumeria grinned. “You’re the best, big bro. Maybe you can get laid while we’re there, it could help you with your stress.”

Guzma was really good at walloping his little sister with pillows when she annoyed him. Like right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...happy new year?
> 
> this was kinda a nothing chapter. Idk how much I'll continue to write because of time constraints, but I do enjoy this plot and the versions of the characters that I've come to love. Ken and Heath are my sons.


	5. This is "That Chapter"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five: We pick up with Team Skull in Hea Hea City, and Hau forces Lillie to step out of her comfort zone. 
> 
> And, uh, smut?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> find the new tags before you read this chapter and decide whether or not you want to keep going fam

Plumeria would never tell anyone, but Ken and Heath were her favorite grunts. All the grunts were great, but the two were the best of bros she had ever seen. They had an undying love for one another, and Plumeria was sure that if they had to, they would betray Team Skull to keep each other safe.

They were also really, really bad rappers, but that was part of the fun.

Heath had finished laying down one of his 'sickest rhymes yet' when Guzma slammed his hands on the table. "So Necrozma? Or no?!"

"No Necrozma," Ken reported sadly. He dropped a pile of gems, nuggets, and star pieces on one of the tables. "We just found all this shit."

Plumeria eyed the loot, before sending her brother an amused glance. "Guz, we could use that. Start payin' off our debt in spades." She didn't wait for him to reply, looking at the grunts instead. "Look, we're not pleased you couldn't find the legendary, but ya did good, boys. Why don't ya spend some time off on Akala, catch a new partner or two." The admin crossed the room to dig in her purple suitcase. "Catch." She tossed some Nest Balls at the boys.

"Really? Thanks, Plume!" Heath grinned. "This is gonna be great!"

Guzma sat down in a grey armchair in the corner of the room. "Hold on, didn't you have to scare up some muscle to get into the hollow? The fuck happened with that?"

Ken grinned even wider than before. "Oh man! We met some rad chick with a killer Grimer! What was her name again?"

"Avalon? Yeah, Avalon!" His partner replied. "That's what her mom called 'er." He sighed. "That was a woman alright. She's an honorary member in our book."

Guzma rolled his eyes. "Sure. Whatever." He stood up and passed the grunts. "Imma go drink. Do what y'all want."

Plumeria ushered the grunts off after Guzma left, telling them to go check the Battle Royale off of Route 6. "I need a spa day." She explained to them, releasing her Salandit, Queen Bey, and locking the door behind them. The Tide Song Hotel had an adequate pool and a pretty nice spa, but the trainer was in the mood for the sauna. She wrapped a towel around her waist and walked into the all-gender sauna room. Salandit hissed happily when the heat hit her, and Plumeria chuckled. "Nice, ain't it?"

"Salllll." The lizard sighed in agreement.

The sauna door opened after a couple minutes and a blonde male entered. He blanched at the sight of Plumeria but sat down anyway. "I didn't realize you'd be here."

The admin glanced over at him and laughed, patting Bey on the head. "Nice to see you too kid. How's Null?"

He ignored her. "None of your business."

"Aye, I'm kinda your boss, kid." She frowned. "You could at least pretend like ya like me." Bey hummed in agreement. "'Sides, I know that you're only doin' this to stay away from that witch. The way I see it, Guz and I are saving your ass."

"I know. You don't have to rub it in." He pouted. "Why are you guys here anyway?"

"We needed a break. I wanted one, at least." Plumeria closed her eyes and leaned back, hitting the sauna wall. "I'm hoping that Guz is at least trying to have a good time."

Her companion snorted. "Like he knows how to do that. Last I saw him, he was staring down some girl he saw walk in."

"Sounds like Guz. He likes to look at the goods, but never put 'is hands on 'em." Plumeria rolled her shoulders back, stretching out. "I'm in need of some me time, so I'm just gonna pretend you ain't here. That sound good with you?"

The blonde kid was already blocking her out.

* * *

As soon as he could, Hau had bolted out of Hea Hea in search of a rare Pokémon from Kanto. When he was young, Hau went to the Trainer's School like many other kids on Melemele. There he was taught by Vaporeon User Polly, one of the legendary Eeveelution trainers. Her Vaporeon, Cujo, was one of the strongest Pokémon Hau had ever met. He vowed to himself that once he was strong enough he would find himself an Eevee to train. Kukui knew that, and on their ride to Akala, he took care to mention that to Hau.

While Kahuna Olivia gave them a tour of Hea Hea upon arrival, Hau begged Lillie to come along. She was very much unsure of it, as she had plans to relax at the spa at the Tide Song Hotel, but Ellie got out of her Pokéball and contributed to the begging. Ellie wasn't like Nebby, who refused to fight. She was a spunky little bird, and in the time before their trip to Akala, she did a fair share of fighting bugs. She now sat at a pretty level 20, and eagerly fought wild Pokémon without Lillie's command.

When they arrived on Route 4, Hau stumbled upon an Eevee quickly. Lillie had never seen one in person, and the minute she set her eyes on it, the girl fell in love.

"I never realized how cute they were!" She squealed in a moment of wild, uncharacteristic glee.

Hau had called on his Pikachu, Wattsky, and was ordering another Quick Attack when he looked at her with a sparkle in his eyes. "Maybe you could catch one!"

"Oh, no, I could never do that." She recoiled. "I'd have to battle it."

The Eevee that Hau was battling mewled and another Eevee popped out of the grass. It suddenly became a two-on-one battle and Wattsky was clearly outnumbered.

Ellie flew off of Lillie's shoulder and landed next to the electric mouse. "Corioo!"

Hau nudged his friend. "I think she wants to battle!"

"B-battle?" Lillie stuttered. "I don't even know what moves she has!"

"Bzzt!" Rotom stirred to life. Ava had temporarily let go of her Pokédex, knowing it would help the young trainer in his quest. "Ellie currently knows Feather Dance, Baton Pass, Air Cutter, and Helping Hand."

The trial-going trainer grinned. "There you go!"

"Um." Lillie paused.

Hau turned to her, eyes pleading. "Come on Lillie, I know you can do it! Just give it a shot!"

The Eevee facing Ellie suddenly started to charge. "Veee!" It cried out, using a fast Quick Attack. Ellie reacted by flapping her wings and using what Lillie assumed was Air Cutter.

"Uh, good job?" Lillie squeaked to her Pokémon. "Now use, uh, Feather Dance! Lower its attack!"

Ellie jumped into the air and spun around, releasing a flurry of yellow feathers that covered the Eevee.

"You did it!" Lillie cheered as Ellie cooed at her. The Eevee got up again and prepared another Quick Attack. Thinking on her feet, Lillie shouted, "Air Cutter, again!"

"Corioo!" Ellie sent another blast of air at the Eevee.

Her friend had already caught his own, and he turned to her grinning. Hau handed Lillie a Heal Ball. "Now quick, throw it!"

"Oh-okay!" Lillie tossed the ball at the distressed Eevee. She couldn't breathe as it shook, but the ball suddenly clicked. "I. Wow. I did that." Ellie flew up to Lillie's shoulder and nuzzled her trainer. "Good job, Ellie!" The meek trainer fixed her attention on the Heal Ball. Tiptoeing over, Lillie picked it up and released her new partner. "Hello there." Lillie stretched her hand out, hesitantly, for Eevee to sniff.

The Eevee looked up at her with her big, brown eyes. "Veee!" She squeaked, before licking Lillie's hand.

"I think she likes you." Hau grinned, also playing with his new partner. "My new buddy's gonna be named Crasher! What're you calling yours?"

"Hope." Lillie decided firmly. "I'm naming her Hope." She picked up her new friend. "Let's go show Ava."

Hau nodded. "I wonder what crazy things Ava is getting up to."

"Drinking, probably," Rotom remarked.

The two made their way back down Route 4, Hau stopping to battle a trainer or two and Lillie getting to know Hope. Ellie and Hope seemed to get along well enough, but that wasn't Lillie's main concern. She didn't want to let Nebby out yet. There were too many people around. But when she could, she would introduce her precious cloud to his new family member. Lillie still wasn't keen on battles, but by battling and catching Hope she was starting to piece together something that she never really, truly, had. A family.

* * *

For those who remember the first chapter of this story, we were introduced to Ava when she was traveling to Alola via fishing boat. Armed with nothing but her mother, her mother's seasick pet, and her mother's seasick international police semi-boyfriend, Ava had to brave a hurricane and some less than friendly Sharpedo as she traveled. Someone had to keep their wits about them, so Ava was left to be the level-headed one in the storm. The experience shook her up a fair amount; not enough to ruin boats for her forever, but enough to make her not want to see one for at least another month.

Kukui brought her, Lillie, and Hau to Akala via speedboat. Ava made the executive decision to hide in the cabin, where she slept for as long as possible. If there were a cute cutscene, one would see Hau jumping excitedly and Lillie holding her hat. Jäger would be flailing his arms around happily, with green ooze hitting the windows of the boat. Ava just let it happen.

When they docked at the port in Hea Hea, the crew was greeted by quite possibly the most gorgeous woman Ava had ever seen. Adorned with gems and jewels, Kahuna Olivia welcomed them to Akala and invited them to participate in the three Island Trials that took place. Captain Mallow greeted them as well, and Ava suddenly realized how utterly screwed she was in Alola: the women were fucking  _beautiful_.

Mallow hurried off to run her trials for other trial-goers, and Olivia gave Hau and Lillie the grand tour of Hea Hea. Kukui mentioned something about a wife to go back to and offered Ava a place to stay while the others explored. Politely, she declined. After spending most of her Melemele trials with Hau, Lillie, or the Grunt Duo, Ava needed a break.

There were two grand hotels in Hea Hea: The Hano Grand Resort, and the Tide Song Hotel. Hano was out of the way, and Tide Song had an open bar. Ava checked in to a room on the third floor, released Jäger, and immediately retrieved the bottle of tequila she had taken from her mother. Setting it on the end table next to the bed, Ava laid down and closed her eyes. "What the fuck am I doing?" She asked herself.

"Good question. I could ask myself the same thing." A gruff voice spoke from the doorway. Either Ava had left it open, or Jäger had snuck out already. Either way, there was a six-foot goth standing in her way. "Saw you walk in by ya'self. You don't look like the drinkin' type." He nodded to the bottle next to her. "Ain't you a little young?"

Ava scoffed, sitting back up. "Drinking age here is same as Kanto. And I'm 18, fuckwad." She rolled her eyes. The stranger cracked a grin but didn't move. "Come in, I guess."

He sauntered inside, an unsettling swagger surrounding him. The door shut behind him, and Ava stood up to meet him. "Gotta name, girlie?"

"Not that it's any of your business." She replied, sizing him up. The gold chain around his neck gleamed under the hotel lights, and Ava couldn't place the symbol. She traced the outline of it. "What's with the skull, tough guy?"

"Doesn't seem like any of your business either." The stranger snickered. "So you got plans for your drink over there? Drinking alone doesn't sound too fun."

Ava bit her lip, partially in thought, and backed up. She took the bottle and looked around for the little complementary cups that the hotel usually provided. The stranger had other plans. As Ava turned around, she found herself confronted with him again. He plucked the bottle from her hands and opened it, downing at least two shots with one go. Handing it back to her, he leered down at her until she did the same. Ava took a long swig, a flush spreading over her cheeks as she felt his eyes on her.

"Atta girl." He purred, taking the bottle once more and setting it behind her, inhaling Ava's scent as he brushed past her. "You mentioned Kanto. What's a little thing like you doing here in Alola?"

That was a question she shouldn't answer. "Less talking," Ava growled, pulling the chain around his neck until their lips met and she didn't have to think anymore. She kissed him aggressively, gasping as he bit down on her lip,  _hard_. The man wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her up, Ava wrapping her legs around his waist. He stopped kissing her to lick down her neck and bit at her jaw. "Fuuuuck." Ava moaned.

"No one treats you like this in Kanto, eh?" The stranger snickered, leaving another mark on her collarbone.

"There's a lot I missed out on." She sighed. The man turned and practically threw her onto the bed. Ava pulled her grey tank top off and he landed on top of her, raking his hands over her tits. "Please, god, keep going."

He unhooked her bra and threw it to the side. The stranger threw his jacket off and leaned down to her chest. "I can do that." He grinned maliciously, licking her left nipple before biting her. When Ava gasped he laughed, and he bit down on her other breast. "Mhm, ya make the best noises, babygirl."

Ava grasped desperately at his baggy sweatpants. "Off." She pleaded.

The man dropped the sweats as Ava struggled to remove her shorts. He watched her gleefully, before finally giving her a hand and yanking her shorts down, her underwear with it. Spreading her legs, the stranger traced the outline of her pussy. Even counting her one-time thing with Ilima, Ava hadn't gotten anything since she left Saffron City (and even then it had been a while). Fucking a tattooed stranger may not be the best of ideas, but Ava was too wet to even think. He noticed, too, and sunk two fingers into her cunt. "Somebody's excited." He pushed her legs up and ran his hands up and down her thighs.

She leaned forward and tugged at the waistband of his boxers. His cock sprang up, the tip gleaming with a piercing. "Holy fuck."

The stranger put his hand on her chest and pushed her down. Lining himself up with her, the man loomed over her. "Get ready, babygirl," he purred.

As a bored, promiscuous pansexual, Ava had taken a lot. But the stranger with the skull chain wasn't like anything she had ever experienced. The barbell through the tip of his cock raked against her inner walls and made Ava shiver with every thrust. He pounded her senselessly, and if she gasped "Harder!" he happily fucked her harder.

"God I love watching your tits bounce." The man growled in her ear, tugging on her earlobe with his teeth. "Ya like it when Daddy fucks you like this?"

Ava had no time to register the fact that the man just referred to himself as Daddy (in the third person, no less). "Yes!" She moaned.

The man slowed down, hitting her with slow, long thrusts. "I wanna hear ya say it."

She was so close that she couldn't help it. "Please, Daddy! Fuck me harder!"

The stranger pushed back into her and sped up again, grunting out obscenities as he came closer to his climax. "Cum for me babygirl." He grunted, finally plunging into her and cumming. Ava felt as if she was being filled to the brim, and the pressure was too much.

She came in a rush, squeezing her thighs together around the stranger. Ava grabbed him by his messy bedhead and kissed him in a bruising kiss. He held her as they both came down, and he laid her back down as her breathing slowed down.

"Ya uh, ya gonna give me your name now?" He asked her quietly, moments later.

Ava shook her head. "Uh-uh. That takes away the fun out of this."

He smiled again, the malicious intent fading into something different. The man pulled out and lay beside her. Nuzzling her neck, the man said, "I think I like Babygirl better anyway."

* * *

When Jäger returned to the room with an excited Lillie and Hau in tow, they found Ava curled up in a pile of blankets. Hau recounted to a very, very hazy Ava how he and Lillie caught twin Eevees and Lillie actually battled for once. When Lillie hesitantly asked how Ava had spent her day, Ava explained she had just taken a really, really long nap.

"Tequila?" Hau found the bottle on the end table. "Can I have some?"

"Go for it." Ava shrugged. "I've had enough for one day."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SURPRISE, SEX!
> 
> Ava's the kind of protagonist who would find a way to help Team Skull out (as we've seen) so there had to be some reason for her to have a conflict with Guzma. It's just uh. A messy conflict.
> 
> While I still can I'm going to try and write us through Akala, maybe get passed Aether Paradise. As a fulltime college student I don't often have time to write for myself, but I would love to continue this.


	6. Edgelord Cometh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six: The Edgy Chapter (Or, remember that kid from the sauna? You already know where this one's going).

They lost Lillie on the Paniola Ranch. Hope was quite rambunctious and paired with Ellie the two were enough to keep Lillie's hands full (and then some). She stopped outside the Pokémon nursery to train, promising Ava and Hau she'd catch up with them for their second trial later. Hau was instantly fine with it, distracting himself by searching for a water stone for Crasher. Ava, after making sure Lillie was armed with medicine, wandered toward Route 5 as well.

Route 5 held a number of double battles, which meant for the time being Ava had to withhold herself from fighting. She loved Jäger and all his destructive ways, but sometimes she wished he wasn't her only partner. Obviously, there was nothing limiting her from catching Pokémon. But her encounter with Jäger wasn't a normal capture. Ava wanted to find more teammates in weird ways. But as she looked on down the route, it was clear she was going to have to rethink that.

Midway down the route, as she bent over to find a dropped TM, Ava felt a chill go down her spine. Someone was watching her.

"Hello?" She called out, looking around wildly. The route was filled with hills and rock formations; there were plenty of hiding places for a stalker...or a member of the mob. Ava couldn't place the uncomfortable feeling of being watched, but the more she glanced about, the less she saw. "I swear to god if you don't come out I'm going to set my Grimer on you."

"Calm down." A voice said from above her. Ava looked up the rock formation in front of her and had to shield her eyes from being blinded. A trainer dressed in black stared down at her. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"Ava! Look at this sick bug that won't let go of my leg!" Hau ran over. "I feel my blood levels dropping-hey, who're you?"

The edgy newcomer slid down the rock. "My name is not of your concern. All you need to know is I'm an enforcer of Team Skull, and I'm not going to let you pass unless you can defeat me in battle." He pulled out a red and black Pokéball that looked like someone had scribbled over the white bits with a black sharpie. "I am your next test of strength. If you cannot pass, your weakness will be evident. Team Skull will take this weakness and exploit it, making an example of you for all of Alola to see. Now, which one of you is going to battle me?"

Ava had stopped paying attention, instead tending to the Grubbin on Hau's leg. "Yeah sure I'll do it, hold on." She brushed the blonde off. The bug took some nudging, but Ava eventually pulled it off and instantly tried to cover the bleeding. "Oh fuck. You have any bandages?"

"Uh." The new trainer was taken aback. He yanked his hoodie off and then removed his white undershirt, revealing his pasty white skin to the Alolan sun. "Use this shirt, I won't need it anyway. Material possessions truly hold us back from achieving Nirvana anyway."

The eldest trainer muttered something along the lines of "Calm down there buddy" but took the shirt anyway. "Hau, do me a favor and text Lillie that you got injured. Actually, don't do that. She'll pass out somewhere and we won't be able to find her." Ava took note of how the newcomer stiffened at the mention of Lillie's name, but continued putting his hoodie back on. She tore the shirt into strips and began to wrap Hau's wound. "This should hold for at least a bit." Ava stood back up. "Head over to the Pokémon Center and have this checked out."

"You kidding?" Hau exclaimed. "I want to see you fight him!"

"Of course you do." Ava sighed. "All right pal, I'll fight ya. One condition though."

The blonde trainer once again readied his Pokéball. "That is?"

"If I win, you're gonna drop the shit and explain to me who you are, why you were following me, and what the fuck Team Skull has to do with this." Ava pulled out Jäger's Pokéball and held it out, clicking the button and enlarging the ball.

"Hn. That's a noble request." The trainer agreed. "Go, Bruce!" He tossed a Pokéball out and released his teammate, a Zubat he called Bruce.

Ava released Jäger. "Bite it."

"You as well! Use Bite!"

Bruce flew at Jäger, hitting the Grimer right in the mouth. Jäger bit down on the small bat Pokémon and spat it out. "Griiiiime." Jäger whined as if he realized the Zubat wasn't a snack. Bruce the Zubat flew back around as his trainer ordered a Wing Attack. Jäger was having none of that, however, and chomped the bat's wing when he was hit.

"Two hit KO?" The trainer was taken aback, recalling Bruce. "Fine then. You're stronger than I assumed. But maybe this won't be the same once you meet my partner Null." He released his second Pokémon from another probably-sharpie'd ball.

"What is that?" Ava asked, gazing at the strange horse-like beast. The body was dark grey, and it wore a brown helmet over its head. She retrieved Rotom from her bag and tried to wake them up. "Come on you dumb possessed smartphone."

Hau gasped. "It's so cool!"

The trainer chuckled. "Your Pokédex won't recognize Null. They're a specially designed Pokémon that I rescued from the clutches of evil. We have bonded over shared turmoil at the hands of corporate corruption. Pain has made us strong. And now, Null will use their strongest attack," the trainer narrowed his eyes and pointed at Jäger, " _Tackle!_ "

"Poison Fang." Ava didn't flinch as the strange Pokémon ran straight for Jäger's jaws. This trainwreck went on for a while. Null was a strong attacker, but it fell easily to the toxic poisoning from Jäger. He too had sustained a lot of damage. As the trainer recalled his partner, Ava jogged over to her Pokémon and hand-fed him a Sitrus berry. "Hang in there pal." She tapped him on the head with his ball once he finished eating.

"Wow! What a ride!" Hau jumped up and down, immediately wincing because of the wound. "You did really great!"

It took Ava a minute to realize he was talking to the other trainer. "You gotta name?"

"Tch." He looked away. "My name...is Gladion."

"Gladion? That's such a cool name!" Hau exclaimed. He limped over to Gladion and got a little too close to the new trainer. "That's Ava, and I'm Hau."

Gladion tried to avoid Hau's excited gaze. "Uh, hello."

Ava tucked Jäger's Pokéball in her bag. "All right pal, here's what we're going to do. We're going to head over to the Pokémon Center and while Hau gets checked out, you're going to explain to me what the fuck your deal is."

The blonde trainer frowned, but as Ava began to walk away, he followed. Hau too began to follow, limping behind them. "Are you going to limp the entire way there?" Gladion asked.

"Absolutely!" Hau replied. "Ava would yell at me if I tried to run."

Gladion 'humphed' and stopped to wait for Hau. Without warning, he grabbed Hau by the legs and picked him up in a manner some would refer to as "bridal style". "You're slowing us down."

Ava held the door open for the duo once they arrived at the Pokémon Center, trying not to grin. Once they had Hau checked in and in better wrappings, the three sat down on a couch in the corner. Ava bought the trio Tapu Cocoa, Hau accepting it happily and Gladion accepting it begrudgingly. "So. Explain."

"If you insist. It started a year ago…I was fighting with my mother again. I had just discovered a secret lab, hidden in the bowels of our company's headquarters. Null was locked down there, along with a small Pokémon my sister had taken to. I was in the process of releasing him when my mother discovered me. She tried to stop me.

'Gladion, have I not provided you with enough? Is my motherly love for you not what you desired?' She pleaded with me as I packed my bags. 'Think of your sister! What shall she do without her older, stronger, more experienced brother?'

I turned away, trying not to think of my younger sister. 'She is stronger than you think. One day, I will come back for her.' I waited for my mother to exit my room. I then left in the dead of night, armed with nothing but Null and a bag of clothing.

For months, I traveled Alola. I followed the actions of my mother as her behavior grew erratic, and when I heard that my sister went missing I became enraged. Had she done something to displease my mother? Was she dead? It was then that I vowed to become stronger. For her.

I trained for days, weeks, until I found myself in Po Town. At first, I merely defeated the grunts, letting them come back for more and defeating them every time. I then took on their boss Guzma, who handily defeated Null. I begged him to train me, but he turned me away.

After that, I kept coming back again and again. I was not to give up. A few weeks ago, he finally accepted my bargain, making me a Team Skull Enforcer. Since that day I have been managing grunts and keeping them in order. However, days ago at the Tide Song Hotel, I received new instructions. I was to find a trainer described to me by two grunts, a trainer who they claimed could become a new Team Skull admin. That trainer was you."

Ava stared at him. "Are you fucking with me?"

Gladion shook his head. "Ken and Heath were under the impression you could be a part of our larger plan. Guzma had me follow you. I believe them now."

The lone female trainer shook her head. "Look, buddy, I helped those two because I wanted to keep them out of trouble. I don't want to join Team Skull."

Hau slurped up his Tapu Cocoa. "Please don't! It would break Lillie's heart."

Gladion froze again. "I must go. Thank you...for the cocoa. And consider my offer." He looked to Hau. "Next time I see you, don't make me carry you anywhere."

As he left, Ava watched him blankly. "Weird guy."

"I thought he was cute." Hau shrugged.

" _What?"_

* * *

Plumeria and Guzma was neck deep in Zubats, surrounding by Digletts, and yet the younger of the two couldn't get her mind off of something irrelevant. "So where'd you go?"

"Whatcha mean?" Guzma asked, before shouting to his Pokémon partner to use Razor Shell on a heard of Alolan Diglett.

"Yesterday at Tide Song when you went off to drink. You came back happy as a Clampearl but ya didn't tell us shit." She watched Queen Bey roast a Zubat or two before continuing. "Gladion told me something 'bout you watching a girl in the lobby."

Guzma chuckled. "Yeah, some cute little number from Kanto walked in on her own. I didn't mean to fuck her. But she pulled out a bottle of tequila and it went downhill from there." He called back Ed the Golisopod and sent out Evan the Ariados. "Kinky little shit clung to me real quick."

"So you finally got some." Plumeria grinned. "Good job bro. You used protection, right?"

"Uh. Evan, use Spider Web to trap these fools." Her big brother avoided the question.

Plumeria turned and stared at him. "Excuse you? You mean you didn't...you mean we might get a mini-Guzma? Ya fucking kidding me?"

"Plume, god, I didn't think about it at the time okay?" Guzma recalled Evan and the duo sprinted forward, seeing an opening when the cave Pokémon started to fade away. "I just, I dunno, she was cute!"

"Yeah okay sure you keep telling yourself that when you have a little mini-monster running around!" Plumeria shouted at him as he bolted away from a Larvitar. "I'm not ready to be an aunt!"

Guzma nearly tripped over a rock and flipped his sister off. "She'll be fine, ok?" He snapped.

Plumeria caught up with him, and the two slowed to a jog as they exited Diglett's tunnel. "So what, you just fuck and go?" She asked as they sat on a bench next to a Route Marker.

"Nah." Guzma shook his head. He thought back to that day, to after he and the girl with no name fucked.

" _Now what?" Guzma asked the girl, as he traced little lines on her bare chest. Her green eyes flickered from his hands to his face. "You want me to go?"_

" _I don't know." She ran her hand through his short, black undercut. "My friends will be back eventually. But not yet." The girl with no name rolled over and straddled him, the mess the two made leaking out over both of them. "I could go for a shower."_

_Guzma tilted his head to the side, smirking."That an invitation?"_

_The girl laughed. It was loud and brassy, something Guzma could get used to. "Yeah. It is." She slid off of him and onto the ground. Making her way to the bathroom, she left the door open for him as she entered. He heard her turn the faucet on. "Coming?"_

_Hesitantly, Guzma followed. "Hey uh, I am, just don't judge or shit." He said to her, before removing his shirt and chain. He wasn't proud of the scars that lined his chest, and though his tattoos covered many of them, some were too obvious._

_But the girl wasn't fazed. As he stepped into the shower with her, she ran her finger down his chest, following the grooves of one particularly large scar. "I won't ask." She replied._

_The shower ran over her head, and Guzma was handed a bottle of body wash. Opening it, he squeezed a drop into his hand. Lathering up his hands, he started to rub her shoulders with the body wash. They didn't talk, as she too began to wash him off with care. It had been a while since he had fucked someone, but no one ever bothered to touch him the way she was then. "Kanto, huh." He said after a while._

_She looked down, opened her mouth but closed it, as if she wasn't sure what to say. "Saffron." The girl finally told him. "I live on Melemele now."_

" _Why'd ya move?" He squeezed out more soap and made her turn around so he could wash her chest. Rubbing circles around each breast, he pressed his body against her. "Don't gotta tell me if ya don't wanna."_

" _It's complicated." She said quietly. "I'm not really in a...safe place."_

" _Boy, I know that feelin'," Guzma said. He knew it wouldn't comfort her, but there was something tugging on his soul that made him want to let her know she wasn't alone._

"...Then I dunno, we got outta the shower and cuddled a bit more. I left her in 'er room." Guzma finished explaining. "She was running from something or someone, Plume. If I didn't have my wits, I might've stayed."

"All that from some girl you had sex with?" Plumeria shot him a look. "Wild."

"Fuck off man." He shoved her. "Come on, we have to get to Konikoni before sunset. You have an expedition to lead tomorrow."

The two trudged on until they reached Konikoni, checking into a hostel where some of their grunts were staying. Guzma was about to settle in for the night (meaning put on some porn and drink) when he got a call from Gladion. "Whaddya want?" He slurred.

"The trainer the grunts told you about. She's strong." Gladion got straight to the point. "She's uninterested in the team."

"Hah. 'Course she is." Guzma rolled his eyes. "Think she'll be a problem though?"

"That's...yet to be determined. She only has one Pokémon with her, so if she really becomes a problem it shouldn't take more than a strong Ground-type to take her down. Or maybe even your Golisopod." Gladion reported. "I'll wait for further instructions. Goodbye."

"That kid," Guzma muttered. He lay back and got to his business, not concerned with the report. Truthfully, he had sent Gladion out on the task as busy work. He wasn't too worried about some trainer that his grunts worshipped. He was more stuck on the girl that he had encountered in the hotel, the one without a name who was running from someone.

* * *

Hau, on the orders of Nurse Joy, was to stay in the Pokémon Center and wait. Lillie promised to be there soon, but when Ava suggested she stay with Hau, Hau brushed her off. He insisted she go out and enjoy herself.

"I should take it easy anyway, and my team isn't ready to fight in the next trial in the slightest," Hau explained in a rare moment of calm rationality. "You should continue on. We can always meet back at Kukui's lab in Hea Hea."

So Ava set off for the next trial in Brooklet Hill. The quiet pools of water rippled as Ava walked down the rickety bridge.

"Aieeee!"

_So much for calm._

Ava ran towards the source of commotion and stumbled upon a small girl with blue hair. A tiny blue bug was latched onto her leg, but unlike the Grubbin from before, this one seemed to be nuzzling the girl's calf. "Oh my god." Ava muttered. "You know it's not attacking you, right?"

"It's still scaring me!" The tiny girl squeaked. "Make it stop!"

"Fine." Ava called out Jäger. "Use Poison Fang."

The bug jumped off the girl's leg and dodged Jäger's slow attack. It launched at Jäger and chewed on him, before blasting off the Grimer with a stream of bubbles.

"You want to play?" Ava asked. "Use Poison Gas!"

The bug couldn't dodge the gas and began to cough. Ava ordered Jäger to use Thief, a new attack they had picked up before leaving Melemele.

The blue girl inched closer to Ava. "Here, if you're going to catch it, you might want this." She passed Ava a teal Pokéball with black webbing. "A Net Ball will make it easier to catch the Dewpider." She hid behind Ava when the bug spotted her again. "Eep! Make it go away."

"Move out of the way, Jäger." Ava chucked the ball at what the girl referred to as the Dewpider. "Come on, I don't have all day."

The ball clicked finally, and Ava retrieved it. Releasing the Pokémon, Ava caught the Dewpider in her arms before it could escape. "Hey there buddy, I don't think this lady likes it when you cuddle her."

"Piii?" The Pokémon trilled.

Rotom buzzed around Ava's head. "This Dewpider is a level fourteen female."

Dewpider rubbed her water bubble against Ava's chest endearingly.

"That feels so weird." Ava chuckled. "You're a spider-based Pokémon, so how about Arachne?" She pulled a Pecha berry out from her bag and fed it to her new teammate.

Arachne trilled again, before hopping out of Ava's arms. She skittered over to Jäger and began to poke around at him.

The girl behind Ava sighed. "I'm sorry I screamed. I may be a trial captain, but I'm deathly afraid of b-b-bug types." She stuck her hand out for Ava to shake. "I'm captain Lana, and I'm guessing you're here to attempt my trial."

Ava shook her hand. "Yeah, something like that."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this story is based on a run I did a long time ago when I decided that instead of having a starter I'd use a random Alolan form. I went with Grimer because it was a combination of two of my favorite types. I'm currently re-running that team so I have a better grasp of the story and how some battles would go. Fun fact, I've run into two shinies in the game, both of which I'm carrying on my team for the time being. One is a shiny Pikipek named Madea, and the other is a shiny Zubat my sister named Kermit.
> 
> That's about it for author's notes.


End file.
